*^  n     ]_|w 


6 


Southern  Branch 
of  the 

University  of  California 

Los  Angeles 


Form  L   I 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamded  below 


MAY  El  ^^ 

JUL  1  7  192^ 
Jul  3  I  W» 

DEC  1  jJ  19?^ 

.  '.A 

APR  lil526 
ii^AR  2  8  192?^^ 

a^6l      8  AON 

OCT  2  4  1929 


Form  L-9-5m-7.'22 


fP.3> 
/93tf 


JUL  2  4 


1961 


\*''V 


Building  an  American  "skyscraper" 

Two  thousand  men  worked  twelve  months  in  the  construction  of  this  splendid  office 
building.  Thirty  million  dollars  was  spent  for  land,  materials,  and  labor  ;  40  stories 
were  built;  and  offices  were  provided  for  15,000  persons.  A  structure  worthy 
the  men  of  various  vocations  —  architect,  contractor,  workman,  business  man  — who 
cooperated  to  produce  it 


OCCUPATIONS 

A  TEXTBOOK  IN  VOCATIONAL 
GUIDANCE 


r,v 


ENOCH  BURTON  GO  WIN 

ASSISTANT   I'KOFESSOR  OF  COMMEKCE,  SCHOOI,  OF  COMMKKCE 
ACCOUNTS,  AND  FINANCE,  NEW   YORK  UNIVERSITY 


AND 

WILLIAM  ALONZO  WHEATLEY 

SUPERINTENDENT   OF   SCHOOLS,    MIDDLETOVVN,    CONNECTICUT 


GINN  AND  COMPANY 

BOSTON     •     NEW   YORK     •     CHICAGO     •     LONDON 
ATLANTA     •    DALLAS     •     COLUMBUS     •    SAN   FRANCISCO 


COPVRUiHT,  1916.  P.Y  ENOCH   BURTON  GOWIX  AND 

WILLIAM  ALONZO  WHEATLEY 

ALL    RKJlirS    RESERVIiU 

216.3 


tEbe   SItbtnirum   Urtei 


)MI'ANV  •  I'Kn 
I'JbTU.N  •  U.b.A. 


^  ^6  \ 


PREFACE 

In  choosing  his  life  work  the  young  man  faces  a  prob- 
lem of  vital  importance,  and  he  should  act  upon  the  best 
possible  information  and  counsel.  It  is  no  satisfactory  solu- 
tion to  leave  him  with  the  vague  statement  "  The  world  lies 
before  you,"  or  to  tell  him  "There  is  always  room  at  the 
top  "  ;  nor  is  the  matter  settled  by  saying  "  You  need  more 
training."  The  young  man  learns  after  a  time  that  the  real 
test  lies  not  so  much  in  ambition  and  upward  looking  as 
in  effort  well  directed.  He  then  wants  to  know  what  may 
be  done  and  where  to  take  hold. 

In  three  different,  yet  closely  related  ways,  the  vocational 
needs  of  such  a  young  man  are  being  met.  The  first  is  vo- 
cational education,  the  movement  represented  by  the  rapidly 
increasing  establishment  of  trade  and  technological  schools. 
The  second  is  vocational  guidance  administered  through 
vocational  counselors,  a  most  valuable  work  initiated  in 
Boston  and  fast  spreading  to  other  large  cities.  The  third 
plan,  vocational  information,  is  based  upon  the  view  that 
when  the  young  man  has  the  vocational  materials  with  which 
to  think,  and  is  stimulated  by  parent  or  teacher  to  make 
use  of  these  data,  his  mind  will  generally  shape  up  the 
right  solution.  In  other  words,  he  will  eventually  place 
himself  in  his  life  work. 

The  plan  of  this  book  is  a  combination  of  vocational  guid- 
ance and  vocational  information,  with  the  emphasis  placed 
strongly  upon  the  latter.  It  has  been  found  by  the  authors  — 
especially  by  Mr.  Wheatley,  who  has  supervised  this  work 
in  high  schools  for  some  six  years  —  that  the  method  of 
surveying  in  a  concrete  way  the  various  occupations  usually 


vi  OCCUPATIONS 

brings  about  a  natural  adjustment  of  tlie  young  man  to  his 
life  career;  and  the  immediate  reason  for  writing  this  text 
was  the  belief  that  similar  results  might  quite  readily  be 
duplicated  in  other  classrooms. 

Each  chapter  of  the  book  contains  numerous  exercises, 
readings,  and  references,  the  special  purpose  of  the  exer- 
cises being  to  localize  information.  In  the  Appendix  are 
gi\en  lists  of  selected  volumes  for  vocational  libraries.  A 
collection  of  the  most  helpful  books  can  be  secured  for  a 
few  dollars,  and  for  twent)'  to  twenty-five  dollars  one  can 
buy  a  very  good  working  library  treating  all  the  leading 
vocations.  Considerable  material  can  be  secured  without 
cost ;  mention  of  this  is  made  both  in  the  chapter  references 
and  in  the  Appendix. 

H\-  pupils  in  the  first  or  second  )ear  of  the  high  school 
the  course  here  presented  can  be  completed  in  a  half  year 
with  daily  recitations,  or  in  a  whole  year  with  recitations  com- 
ing two  or  three  times  a  week.  The  text  permits  considerable 
freedom  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  however,  both  as  to  the 
length  of  the  course  and  the  relative  emphasis  to  be  placed 
on  the  different  vocations.  Each  teacher  naturally  will  con- 
sider first  his  own  community  and  the  needs  of  his  class, 
and,  while  requiring  all  pupils  to  study  the  text  as  a  whole, 
will  omit  certain  exercises  and  references  and  assign  special 
topics  as  may  seem  advisable. 

We  are  confident  that  such  a  study  of  vocations,  besides 
being  intrinsically  interesting  to  the  pupils,  gives  them  greater 
respect  for  all  kinds  of  honorable  work,  helps  them  later  to 
choose  more  wisely  their  life  work,  convinces  them  of  the 
absolute  necessity  for  a  thorough  preparation  before  entering 
any  vocation,  and  holds  to  the  end  of  the  high-school  course 
many  who  otherwise  would  drop  out  early  in  the  race.  These 
results  have  actually  been  realized  in  our  practice,  and  we 
believe  that  such  service  should  have  a  place  in  all  high 
schools,  which  arc  the  people's  elementary  colleges. 


PREFACE  vii 

The  personal  information  of  vocations  gained  on  our  part 

through  practical  experience  and  study  has  been  considerably 

extended   by  the  experience  of  others.    People  in  general 

have  been  found  to  be  very  much  interested  in  this  vocational 

study  and  ready  to  place  at  our  disposal  their  own  occupational 

experience.    It  was  the  plan  to  give  credit  in  the  preface  to 

all  these  persons,  but  the  list  of  those  who  have  contributed 

either  information  or  criticism  worthy  of  note  has  grown  so 

extensive  that  considerations  of  space  compel  its  omission, 

though  this  does  not  lessen  our  appreciation  of  the  service 

rendered. 

THE  AUTHORS 


CONTENTS 

PART  I.    INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  STUDY  OF  VOCATIONS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  Importance  of  Vocational  Information     ....  i 

II.  Characteristics  of  a  Good  Vocation 7 

III.  How  to  study  Vocations 21 

PART  II.    DETAILED  STUDY  OF  THE  MOST  IMPORTANT 
LIFE  VOCATIONS 

IV.  Agriculture 31 

V.  Commercial  Occupations 66 

VI.  Transportation 99 

VII.  Civil  Service 127 

VIII.  Manufacturing 140 

IX.  The  Building  Trades 163 

X.  Machine  and  Related  Trades 196 

XL  The  Engineering  Professions 221 

XII.  The  Learned  Professions  and  Allied  Occupations  245 

XI II.  Miscellaneous  and  New  Openings 275 

PART  III.    VOCATIONAL  ADJUSTMENT 

XIV.  Choosing  vour  Life  Work 301 

XV.  Securing  a  Position 321 

XVI.  Efficient  Work  and  its  Reward 338 

APPENDIX 349 

Vocational  Liijraries 349 

Reference  Works 350 

Free  Materi.-vl  Available      . 351 

INDEX 353 

ix 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Building  an  American  "  sl<yscraper  " Frontispiece 

Plowing  with  a  gas  tractor 32 

Harvesting  grain  with  a  binder 39 

A  trained  farmer  at  work 43 

Cutting  and  threshing  wheat  in  Oregon 49 

A  dairy  farm 5^ 

A  poultry  farm 54 

The  organization  of  a  commercial  concern 83 

A  through  express  train 100 

A  powerful  freight  locomotive 102 

The  operating  department  of  a  railroad 105 

A  railroad  roundhouse 107 

A  switch  yard 109 

"  King  of  the  telegraphers  " 1 1 1 

Organization  of  traffic  department 113 

Financial  and  accounting  department' 117 

A  railroad's  headquarters 118 

Conductor  giving  engineer  the  "  high-ball" 122 

Factory  work 142 

Interior  view  of  a  modern  factory 143 

Diagram  of  the  production  department 147 

Operating  a  disc  grindei' 149 

Studying  a  turntable  lathe 152 

A  factory  process  requiring  trained  men 154 

Apprentices  at  school 158 

George  Westinghouse  —  inventor,  engineer,  and  business  man  .     .  i  60 

At  work  on  a  skyscraper 1 76 

The  building  contractor  begins  work 188 

An  insurance  company's  home  office 191 

A  machine  tradesman 197 

The  machinist  at  work 201 

A  fine  example  of  the  machinist's  skill 203 

Turning  car  wheels 210 

Driving  a  motor  truck      . 2\6 


xii  OCCUPATIONS 

PAGE 

The  Pennsylvania  Station,  New  York  City 222 

Tunnel  under  the  Hudson  River 226 

A  modern  power  plant 228 

A  public-service  power  house 233 

The  Grand  Central  Terminal,  New  York 237 

A  famous  technical  man 240 

The  engraver 287 

A  modern  printing  press 288 


OCCUPATIONS 

PART  I 

INTRODLXTION  TO  THE  STUDY 
OF  VOCATIONS 

CHAPTER  I 

IMPORTANCE  OP^  VOCATIONAL  INFORMATION 

There  is  no  greater  blessing  in  this  world  than  a  steady  job,  with 
increasing  efficiency  and  hence  increasing  wages  as  time  goes  on. — 
Paul  H.  Hanus 

The  average  man  must  earn  his  own  livelihood.  He  should  be  trained 
to  do  so,  and  he  should  be  trained  to  feel  that  he  occupies  a  contemptible 
position  if  he  does  not  do  so.  —  Theodore  Roosevelt 

The  boy's  duty  and  necessity  of  self-support.  No  duty 
comes  closer  home  to  a  young  man  than  becoming  able  to 
support  himself.  He  may  dream  dreams  and  talk  grandh'  of 
what  he  is  to  do,  but  unless  he  is  able  first  of  all  to  take  care 
of  himself  he  fails.  This  fact  is  recognized  by  all  ambitious 
boys.  They  scorn  to  think  of  always  looking  to  their  fathers 
for  support ;  instead  they  plan  careers  of  usefulness  and  seek 
earnestly  to  make  these  plans  real. 

Self-support  is  something  many  are  obliged  to  face  early 
in  life.  Thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  Horace  Greeley 
mounted  step  by  step  from  humble  printer  to  founder  and 
editor  of  the  Nezv  York  Tribune.  Albert  J.  Beveridge  entered 
college  with  only  $50  loaned  by  a  friend,  and  during  vacations 


2  OCCUPATIONS 

cut  wheat  in  ihc  har\-est  lields.  Many  of  our  recognized 
"Captains  of  Industr)"  began  at  the  bottom  as  poor  boys, 
and  our  greatest  national  hero,  Abraham  Lincoln,  inspires 
because  he  conquered  so  many  and  such  difficult  obstacles. 
What  those  men,  and  scores  like  them,  have  accomplished 
is  being  done  to-da}'  in  a  more  humble  yet  praiseworthy  way 
by  millions  of  men.  Whoever  performs  useful  labor,  does 
it  well,  and  lives  honestl}'  and  sincerely,  shares  the  glory  of 
doing  the  world's  work. 

The  opportunities  in  the  world's  work.  This  work  of  the 
world  now  lies  before  you.  In  it  you  are  eager  to  play  a 
large  and  worthy  part.  And  }()u  wonder,  just  as  boys  for 
generations  have  wondered,   "  Is  there  any  place  for  me.?" 

There  certainly  is  much  to  be  done.  This  is  preeminent!}' 
the  age  of  big  tasks  for  all  who  will  qualif\-.  The  farmer  in 
191 2  raised  a  crop  which  sold  for  $9,532,000,000,  an  increase 
over  the  year  before  of  more  than  $  1 ,000,000,000.  The  man- 
ufacturer, as  well,  has  much  to  do.  Into  his  factory  pours  a 
large  part  of  this  enormous  stream  of  raw  materials,  and  from 
the  shipping  room  issues  an  annual  product  of  necessities,  com- 
forts, and  luxuries  worth  $20,767,000,000.  Manufacturing  has 
added  enough  value  to  the  raw  product  to  make  a  string  of  five- 
dollar  bills  that  would  go  around  the  world  eight  times,  and  it 
furnishes  employment  for  an  army  of  nearly  8,000,000  men. 
To  carry  these  products  back  and  forth  demands  railroads. 
We  have  them,  the  greatest  in  the  world,  requiring  2,000,000 
freight  cars  and  manned  by  1,600,000  employees. 

Other  activities  are  on  the  same  gigantic  scale.  Our  mer- 
chants have  their  bales  of  goods  piled  high  in  the  warehouses 
of  China  and  .South  Africa,  and  at  home  every  American  is 
able  to  buy  of  his  local  dealer  jjroducts  formerly  denied  a  king. 
The  engineer  with  mathematical  formulas  and  transit  directs 
the  building  of  tunnels  under  ri\ei"s,  llirough  which  thousands 
of  people  daily  ride,  or  throws  great  dams  across  Nile  or 
Mississippi.    The  chemist  discovers  new  food  products  and 


VOCATlOXAl,   IM'URMAIION  3 

renders  valuable  what  was  formerly  waste,  and  thus  becomes 
the  right-hand  man  of  the  manufacturer.  Then  there  are  the 
millions  of  builders,  machinists,  factory  employees,  doctors, 
lawyers,  teachers,  civil-service  employees  and  countless  other 
workers,  a  vast  army  —  and  what  mighty  tasks  are  theirs. 

The  boy's  eagerness  to  begin  work.  Boys  of  red  blood  are 
eager  to  take  hold,  to  feel  coursing  through  their  veins  the 
joy  of  profitable  effort.  While  most  of  them  are  obliged  to 
earn  money,  all  will  agree  with  Dean  Davenport  that  "every 
man  is  a  better  man  if  he  feels  the  power  to  earn  his  way, 
whether  he  needs  to  do  it  or  not."  They  see  idlers  and 
loafers  and  despise  them.  They  see  the  industrious  and 
the  efficient  doing  things  and  reaping  rewards  and  with 
these  they  choose  to  be.  Millions  of  young  men  everywhere 
are  as  ready  to  play  the  game  well  on  life's  field  as  on  the 
high-school  gridiron. 

And  yet  why  about  us  are  so  many  failures  ?  It  is  sad  but 
true  that  boys  of  promise  often  fail  miserably  in  adult  life. 

Not  long  ago  [says  Dr.  O.  S.  Marden]  three  college  graduates  were 
found  working  on  a  sheep  farm  in  Australia,  one  from  Oxford,  one  from 
Cambridge,  and  the  other  from  a  German  university  —  college  men  tend- 
ing brutes !  Trained  to  lead  men  they  drove  sheep.  The  owner  of  the 
farm  was  an  ignorant,  coarse  sheep  raiser.  He  knew  nothing  of  books  or 
theories,  but  he  knew  sheep.  His  three  hired  graduates  could  speak 
foreign  languages  and  discuss  theories  of  political  economy  and  philos- 
ophy, but  he  could  make  money.  He  had  made  a  fortune,  while  the 
college  men  could  scarcely  get  a  living. 

Results  of  purposeless  drifting.  Would  you  consider  wash- 
ing dishes  proper  work  for  the  college-trained  man  .''  Yet  we 
are  told  that  in  a  certain  dishwashers'  union  of  700  mem- 
bers, 100  are  college  graduates.  One  member  of  this  union, 
himself  formerly  a  college  instructor,  says  : 

Naturally  I  do  not  care  to  reveal  my  name.  We  represent  a  class  of 
men  who  have  found  ourselves  unable  to  cope  with  the  harsh  require- 
ments of  life.    We  are  absolutely  unfitted  for  business  life,  but  I  might 


4  OCCUPATIONS 

have  succeeded  if  I  had  had  even  a  rudimentary  knowledge  of  business 
affairs.  I  was  unmarried  and  came  West  with  just  enough  money  to  last 
me  a  week.  At  first  I  tried  the  rough  work,  but  I  was  unable  to  endure 
its  hardships,  so  I  became  a  dishwasher. 

The  foregoing  is  the  confession  of  a  drifter,  and  drifters 
are  found  everywhere.  If  you  come  to  know  some  harvesting 
gang  which  migrates  over  the  Western  wheat  fields,  you  will 
find  in  it  men  who  should  themselves  be  owning  rich  farms 
instead  of  seeking  chances  to  work  on  one.  If  \ou  study 
tramps  as  they  use  old  tomato  cans  for  coffee  and  discarded 
railroad  ties  for  seats,  you  will  find  that  many  are  men  who 
should  be  driving  trains  instead  of  stealing  rides.  If  you 
stand  in  sympathetic  mood  beside  the  Bowery  bread  line, 
visit  employment  agencies,  look  over  "'  want  ads,"  hold  in 
your  hand  the  many  applications  received  for  the  most  ordi- 
nary position,  it  is  clear  that  here,  too,  are  men  whose  fine 
ability  has  been  feebly  or  unwisely  directed.  The  longer  you 
ponder  over  this  matter  the  more  deeply  will  the  truth  be 
burned  into  your  mind,  that  the  zvorld  Jias  viaiiy  drifters 
and  that  drifti)i^<^  is  dangcrvns. 

Do  )'ou  know  that  by  drifting  you  can  get  into  just  such  a 
plight  as  these  men  .-'  But  such  failure  is  not  for  boys  w'ho 
have  set  out  to  make  good.  You  must  take  a  positive  attitude 
toward  life  and  its  work.  You  must  be  a  pilot  who  takes  firm 
grip  of  tlic  lillc-r  and  sends  the  good  ship  straight  to  her  goal. 

The  simplicity  heretofore  of  choosing  one's  vocation.  But 
that  raises  a  most  serious  question,  the  old,  old  question 
over  which  generation  after  generation  of  young  men  has 
puzzled.  What  is  my  goal .-'  What  am  I  going  to  be  .''  This 
question,  too,  is  becoming  harder  and  harder  to  answer. 
A  boy  in  one  of  the  little  villages  of  one  hundred  years  ago 
knew  something  of  practically  every  vocation.  His  father, 
perhaps,  was  a  tradesman,  with  close  acquaintanceship  with 
other  tradesmen  of  the  village.  The  boy  could  watch  the 
blacksmith  at  work,  he  could  see  the  weaver  weave  and  the 


VOCATIOXAL   IXFOkMA  riON  5 

baker  bake.  I  le  liacl  some  understanding  of  what  was  done 
by  the  minister,  the  doctor,  and  the  lawyer.  His  teacher  and 
the  whole  community  knew  him  twenty-four  hours  of  the  day, 
and  were  interested  in  what  he  w-as  going  to  be.  So,  mak- 
ing use  of  their  well-founded  advice  and  of  his  knowledge 
of  what  the  few  simple  vocations  offered,  he  usually  made 
his  choice  wisely  and  was  fitted  into  his  life  work. 

The  complexity  of  choosing  a  life  career  nowadays.  Ikit 
this  simple  industrial  system  has  changed  and  has  become 
wonderfully  complex.  Men  no  longer  do  tilings,  but  they  do 
o)ie  thing,  and  in  many  cases  ovAy  part  of  one  thing.  Instead 
of  there  being  a  place  in  the  crossroads  store,  where  one  may 
find  out  if  he  likes  it,  mercantile  life  to-day  has  so  many 
different  kinds  of  establishments  and  so  great  a  variety  of 
work  in  each  that  the  average  boy  is  simply  bewildered 
and  would  waste  much  time  in  trying  to  find  out  from  first- 
hand experience  what  he  is  best  fitted  for.  No  boy  of  to-day 
can  work  up  to  a  responsible  position  in  the  field  of  trans- 
portation by  becoming  a  stage  driver  or  a  yard  boy  for  the 
freighter.  No  boy  learns  to-day  what  industry  holds  for  him 
by  watching  the  blacksmith  or  the  cobbler.  Their  work  is 
now  done  by  the  specialist ;  there  are  so  many  different  posi- 
tions in  engineering  and  manufacturing,  and  so  definitely  is 
the  work  partitioned  off  that  in  a  modern  shoe  factory,  for 
example,  one  man  may  spend  his  life  simply  making  heels. 
Our  economic  and  social  system  is  like  a  gigantic  watch  into 
which  myriads  of  men,  as  wheels,  must  be  adjusted.  But, 
unfortunately,  there  are  no  all-skilled  adjustment  makers,  and 
the  danger  is  great  of  round  boys  getting  into  square  holes. 

Placing  a  round  boy  in  a  square  hole  means  a  misfit  for  a 
time  or  for  life.  Cowper  tried  to  be  a  lawyer ;  Goldsmith  tried 
to  be  a  physician.  Both  failed  miserably,  but  they  made  bril- 
liant successes  in  literature.  A.  T.  Stewart  was  unsuccessful 
as  a  minister  and  did  not  find  teaching  congenial.  The  failure 
of  a  friend  to  whom   he  had  loaned   money  left  him  the 


6  OCCl^PATIOXS 

possessor  of  a  dr)--goods  store.  Here  was  something  for 
which  he  was  fitted,  and  consequently  his  name  came  to 
adorn  the  greatest  department  store  of  New  York.  Schiller 
started  to  train  himself  for  surgery.  Handel,  according  to 
his  father's  i^lans,  was  to  be  a  law\er.  Claude  Lorraine  was 
apprenticed  to  a  pastry  cook,  l^ut  the  drama,  music,  and 
painting  claimed  them  and  were  enriched  by  their  genius. 
Everv  man  is  good  for  something.  He  must  put  forth  effort, 
but  this  effort  should  be  directed  toward  that  for  which  he  is 
fitted. 

\'ou  wish  no  tragedv  of  a  misfit  life  ;  you,  too,  purpose  to 
make  the  most  of  }'ourself  and  to  find  and  till  your  proj^er 
calling.  Appreciating  this  desire  and  need  of  young  men, 
the  authors  have  written  this  work  for  the  express  purpose  of 
helping  you  to  make  the  best  choice  of  a  vocation  and  to 
realize  the  most  successful  life  career. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Make  a  list  of  the  principal  vocations  in  which  the  people  of  your 
community  are  engaged.  What  vocation  do  you  know  most  about? 
What  vocation  are  you  most  interested  in .'' 

2.  Instead  of  studying  many  life- vocations  and  considering  a  choice 
of  the  most  suitable,  would  it  be  wise  to  take  the  first  job  offered  and 
work  up  from  that."* 

3.  Has  any  striking  example  come  to  your  attention  of  a  man  who  is 
doing  what  he  seems  best  fitted  for.''  of  a  man  who  has  not  yet  "  found 
himself  "  ?  of  a  man  who  is  a  misfit  ? 

4.  Give  reasons  for  some  of  the  many  vocational  failures  we  see 
about  us. 

5.  Why  is  it  harder  to-day  tlian  it  was  fifty  years  ago  to  choose 
wisely  a  life  career.'' 

6.  What  benefits  do  you  expect  to  gain  from  taking  this  course  in 
vocational  guidance? 


CHAPTER  II 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION 

Occupations  determine  the  fundamental  modes  of  activity,  and  hence 
control  the  formation  and  use  of  habits.  ^  John  Dewey 

The  situation  sifts  down  to  this :  energizing  work  is  decreasing ;  ener- 
vating work  is  increasing.  Vet  it  is  fundamental  that  mankind  must  do 
stimulating  work  or  retrogress.  —  Hermann  Schneider 

Boys  all  want  good  positions.  But  would  they  know  one  if 
they  found  it  ?  Many  men  have  thought  that  they  had  the 
question  answered  and  have  secured  what  they  thought  to  be 
a  good  position,  only  to  learn  in  middle  life  that  it  meant 
disappointment  instead  of  satisfaction,  narrowness  instead  of 
growth,  and  failure  instead  of  success.  Since  this  is  a  complex 
world,  there  are  many  things  to  consider  before  deciding  what 
a  good  vocation  is,  and  just  because  Mr.  Smith,  the  barber, 
looks  prosperous  or  Mr.  Jones,  the  real-estate  dealer,  says 
there  is  nothing  like  selling  land,  you  must  not  jump  at 
conclusions  in  this  important  matter. 

Let  us,  then,  try  to  unravel  this  question.  What  is  a  good 
\'ocation  ?  Whether  a  vocation  is  good  or  bad,  as  we  shall 
soon  see,  does  not  depend  on  one  thing  only,  but  upon  a 
number  of  different  elements.  In  other  words,  we  might  say 
that  there  are  several  characteristics  of  a  good  vocation,  not 
one  characteristic.  And  among  these  let  us  consider  at  once 
the  one  which  no  doubt  comes  to  your  mind  first. 

Remuneration.  You  are  naturally  interested  in  a  salary 
check ;  you  want  to  know  what  pay  there  is  in  a  particular 
vocation.  You  hear  much  of  wages  —  how  one  of  your  friends 
gets  $2.50  a  day  in  a  piano  factory  and  another  friend  $20 
a  week  in  a  big  department  store.    We  are  apt  to  conclude 

7 


8  OCCUPATIONS 

that  friend  No.  2  is  luckier  than  friend  No.  i,  or  that  the 
store  owner  is  better  to  work  for  than  the  factory  operator. 
But  upon  what  does  the  amount  of  wages  depend  ?  There  are 
several  points  to  consider  in  answering  this  question.  One 
is,  Why  is  the  employer  able  to  pay  you  any  wages  at  all  ? 

1 .  Productive  zvork  and  tvagcs.  The  reason  is,  your  work 
is  productive.  If  you  take  a  team  and  cultivator  and  spend 
several  weeks  at  work,  next  fall  there  are  many  more  bushels 
of  corn  as  a  result  of  your  work.  If  you  touch  briskly  the  keys 
of  a  typewriter,  day  after  day,  a  profitable  business  is  better 
able  to  continue  than  if  your  work  had  been  left  undone.  The 
emplo}'er  can  afford  to  pay  you  because  he  makes  money  out 
of  your  work.  How  much  can  he  afford  to  pay  you  'i  This 
depends  very  largely  on  what  you  can  produce.  Here  is  some- 
thing which  every  young  man  aiming  at  a  high  salary  should 
never  forget :  You.  must  not  expect  more  xvages  than  you  are 
ivorth,  and  you  are  not  worth  more  than  you  can  produce. 

The  very  plain  duty  of  every  young  man,  therefore,  is  to 
make  his  work  productive.  This  is  the  royal  road  to  the 
employer's  heart.  If  you  knew  that  by  investing  in  Toledo 
knives  at  50  cents  you  could  sell  any  number  of  them  in  your 
home  town  for  5 1 ,  would  you  not  hasten  to  buy  .-'  Would  not 
Toledo  knives  stand  high  in  )our  estimation  }  In  the  same  way 
your  employer  considers  you.  If  you  are  such  a  good  pro- 
ducer that  from  the  wages  he  invests  in  you  large  sums  are  re- 
ceived, v/ill  he  not  feel  that  he  has  a  most  desirable  young  man 
in  his  employ  1  Will  he  not  value  you  highly }  Would  you 
continue  to  buy  Toledo  knives  at  50  cents  if  you  could  sell 
them  for  only  35  cents  }  With  no  more  right  can  the  employer 
be  expected  to  esteem  highly  the  clerk  upon  wliom  he  is  con- 
stantly losing  money.  You  must  keep  it  clearly  in  mind,  conse- 
quently, that  you  arc  paid  because  you  can  j^roduce  and  that  it 
is  to  your  advantage  to  become  constantly  a  better  producer. 

2.  The  amount  of  waives  and  its  relation  to  the  sjipply  of 
worhnen.    Again,  if  your  employer  can  get  at  a  less  wage 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION        9 

somebody  else  who  will  produce  as  much  as  you  and  as  well, 
will  he  continue  to  pay  you  the  same  wages  ?  This,  you  see, 
is  the  other  side  of  the  wage  bargain,  the  amount  of  wages 
depending  upon  the  supply  of  laborers.  If  there  are  many 
wishing  to  do  a  certain  kind  of  work,  wages  will  be  low  be- 
cause the  supply  is  plentiful.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  supply 
of  workers  is  too  few,  then  wages  wdll  be  relatively  higher. 

What  helpful  things  can  we  learn  from  the  supply-and- 
demand-side  of  the  worker .?  Chiefly  these  :  to  recognize  the 
important  factors  that  contribute  to  an  undersupply  of  w'orkers 
in  certain  vocations,  and  then  to  enter  a  vocation  where  the 
supply  of  workmen  is  comparatively  limited,  as  in  the  follow- 
ing cases  :  (i)  Special  qualifications  may  keep  most  men  out. 
The  designer,  for  example,  requires  gifts  so  unusual  that  the 
supply  of  first-class  designers  is  never  too  great.  (2)  Expen- 
sive training,  which  parents  are  often  unable  to  give,  may 
allow  only  a  few  to  qualify.  A  high-school  graduate  can  com- 
plete in  four  years  his  medical  education  in  some  schools,  but 
it  requires  a  college  education  and  five  years'  medical  training, 
with  hospital  practice  and  possibly  further  study  abroad,  in 
order  to  become  a  high-grade  specialist.  (3)  Or,  changing  de- 
mands may  render  the  supply  inadequate.  The  advent  of  the 
automobile  —  its  sale  soon  amounting  to  millions  annually — 
found  the  supply  of  mechanicians  limited.  But  should  large 
numbers  of  people  take  to  aeroplanes  or  return  to  horses,  it 
would  quickly  lower  garage  rates  and  swell  the  supply  of 
mechanicians.  Good  advice  is  to  shun  vocations  decreasing 
in  importance  and  enter  those  which  have  an  expanding  but 
safe  future.  If,  in  addition,  you  possess  the  special  qualifica- 
tions or  can  secure  the  necessary  training,  you  will  be  more 
certain  to  find  numerous  openings  at  fair  salaries. 

3.  Other  factors  entering  into  the  aniotint  of  wages  re- 
ceived. But  you  may  neither  possess  the  special  qualifications 
nor  be  able  to  take  the  required  training.  Your  rate  of  pay 
then  will  depend  largely  upon  how  good  a  bargainer  you  are. 


ro  OCCUPATIONS 

You  have  a  right  to  demand  what  your  services  are  worth. 
Your  employer  has  a  right  to  offer  what  someone  else  could 
be  hired  for  to  do  the  same  work.  The  actual  wage,  conse- 
quently, is  somewhere  between  these  two  points,  the  precise 
figure  usually  being  the  result  of  much  discussion.  Collec- 
tive, not  individual,  bargaining  is  the  plan  of  the  labor 
unions.  No  locomotive  fireman,  for  instance,  ever  talks  with 
a  railroad  president  concerning  whether  his  daily  wages  shall 
be  $2.85  or  $3.15.  Representatives  of  thousands  of  firemen 
meet  representatives  of  many  railroads  and  the  wage  schedule 
is  arranged.  In  whatever  way  wages  are  regulated  in  the 
vocation  you  will  enter,  you  should  see  to  it  that  you  are  paid 
as  nearlv  as  possible  what  you  deserve. 

In  writing  this  book  we  have  had  many  letters  from,  and 
interviews  with,  both  employers  and  employees.  The  em- 
ployer often  says,  "  We  always  ha\-e  numerous  vacancies," 
"  We  can't  get  enough  applicants  of  the  right  sort,"  etc. 
What  he  means  is  that  for  the  prices  he  is  willing  to  pay 
applicants  are  few.  Or,  more  precisely,  he  has  difiiculty  in 
getting  production  carried  on  at  the  i)rice  he  desires.  The 
employee  just  as  often  says,  "(iood  jobs  are  scarce,"  "The 
demands  are  hard  to  meet,"  "  I  would  not  encourage  young 
men  to  enter  this  work,"  etc.  What  he  means  is  that  for 
the  wage  he  desires  to  receive  positions  are  few.  Or,  more 
precisely,  he  has  difficulty  in  selling  his  production  power  at 
the  price  he  desires. 

Young  men  should  not  be  unduly  elated  over  the  prospects 
painted  by  the  one,  nor  should  they  be  unduly  dismayed  by 
the  difficulties  voiced  b)-  the  other.  The  truth  of  the  matter 
is,  the  young  man  who  is  a  good  producer  in  any  vocation 
not  crowded  and  who  is  willing  to  make  fair  terms  with  his 
employer  is  practically  assured  of  employment  at  good  wages, 

4.  Comparison  of  daily,  yearly,  ami  life  earnings.  Hut 
which  is  more  important,  daily  wage  or  yearly  income } 
Young  men  are  apt  to  be  swayed  by  the  special  earning  — 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION       ii 

the  high  harvest  wage,  the  league  pitcher's  salary,  the  big 
law  fee.  l^ut  as  you  live  all  the  time,  so  you  should  earn  all 
the  time.  It  is  the  total  amount  received  during  the  year  that 
counts.  In  the  large  wage-earning  class  Dr.  Scott  Nearing 
estimates  that  the  average  worker  is  unemployed  20  per  cent 
of  the  time.  For  example,  instead  of  considering  ^2.50  a 
day  the  wages  received  by  a  certain  workingman,  we  would, 
after  deducting  this  20  per  cent,  really  be  dealing  with  a  $2 
wage.  Irregular  work  does  not  pay  in  the  long  run.  Conse- 
quently, one  of  the  tests  that  young  men  must  apply  to  any 
particular  vocation  is,  Does  it  afford  constant  employment.'' 

Yearly  wage,  however,  is  not  enough.  Annual  earnings 
are  more  important  than  daily  earnings,  but  life  earnings  are 
more  important  than  either.  This  truth  leads  us  to  consider 
three  matters  of  importance,  all  closely  related  to  remunera- 
tion. These  are  healthfulness,  safety,  and  the  likelihood  of 
advancement,  which  we  shall  treat  in  the  sections  that  follow. 

EXERCISES 

1.  "The  company  doesn't  pay  enough,"  said  a  boy  who  had  quit 
his  position  as  secretary  to  the  roundhouse  foreman.  Upon  what 
should  the  amount  of  the  boy's  wages  depend .? 

2.  "  I  have  Sam  Holton  beaten,"  said  a  boy  to  his  father.  "  He  gets 
5^1.50  and  I  get  #1 .75."    What  questions  should  the  father  ask.? 

3.  Have  you  ever  heard  employers  and  employees  talking  over 
wages.?    If  so,  in  what  ways  were  their  views  different? 

4.  What  are  the  average  weekly  earnings  of  all  wage  earners  ?  See 
page  1 1  of  the  census  bulletin  mentioned  at  the  end  of  the  chapter. 
Could  you  live  the  way  you  wish  on  that  amount?  How  can  you  earn 
more  than  the  average  worker? 

Healthfulness.  i .  77u:  diffartice  in  the  hcaltJifulncss  of 
vocations.  Do  you  know  that  by  choosing  some  vocations, 
unless  under  the  most  improved  conditions,  you  will  shorten 
your  life  five,  ten,  or  fifteen  years  .-'  Some  of  our  decorated  pil- 
low covers  are  made  in  factories  where  the  workers  unprotected 


12  OCCUPATIONS 

breathe  constantly  the  arsenic  fumes,  the  spray  frequently 
being  so  dense  as  to  resemble  a  mist.  Paint  and  pottery 
workers  find  that  lead  poisoning  destroys  the  appetite  and 
leads  to  nausea,  loss  of  weight,  and  low  vitality.  In  a  Cali- 
fornia factory  unequipped  with  respirators  men  who  were 
willing  to  shovel  in  the  lime  ]3it  received  double  the  usual 
pay,  and  workingmen  were  found  foolish  enough  to  do  it. 
Foolish  ?  \'es,  for  at  such  work  they  could  last  only  from 
four  to  six  .years,  being  forced  at  that  time  to  leave  the  lime 
pit  injured  for  life. 

If  one  of  your  classmates  were  shot  down  in  cold  blood  it 
would  create  a  sensation.  But  until  recently  thousands  of 
young  men  were  actually  killed  every  year,  the  murderers 
being  flying  bits  of  sand,  steel,  and  dust.  When  a  granite 
worker  turns  on  the  sand  blast  the  air  is  filled  with  the  fine, 
sharp  particles.  If  these  reach  the  lungs  they  are  a  fruitful 
source  of  that  dread  occupational  disease,  tuberculosis.  Grind- 
ing cutlery  and  polishing  the  moldboards  of  plows  have  been 
found  so  injurious  that  only  foreigners  ignorant  of  the  effects 
would  do  such  work.  And  they  lasted  but  from  five  to  ten  years, 

2.  7'/ie  constant  improvement  of  conditions  in  7inhealthfnl 
vocations.  So  dreadful  have  the  ravages  of  tuberculosis  and 
other  occupational  diseases  proved  that  a  united  movement  is 
now  well  under  way  to  lessen  the  danger.  Respirators,  devices 
placed  over  the  workmen's  noses  through  which  the  air  is 
filtered,  afford  part  protection  against  fumes  and  dust.  The 
offending  particles  may  not  only  be  screened  out  but  also  drawn 
away  by  means  of  exhaust  pipes  over  the  emery  wheels,  saws, 
vats,  etc.  Improved  ventilation  and  lighting  systems  are  being 
installed,  and  in  many  industries  the  use  of  the  most  injurious 
poisons  is  being  prohibited  by  law.  In  whatever  ways  em- 
ployees find  their  occupations  unhealthful,  they  should  demand 
from  their  employers  the  best  means  of  health  protection 
known,  and  should  themselves  exercise  every  possible  pre- 
caution both  in  their  work  and  in  their  habits  of  living. 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION       1 3 

Thus  we  see  that  the  pubHc  at  large  has  awakened  to  the  fact 
that  the  healthfulness  of  the  worker  is  a  vital  matter  that  must 
be  safeguarded,  and,  as  a  result,  practically  all  occupations 
dangerous  to  health  are  gradually  being  rendered  more  safe. 
However,  there  are  still  many  decidedly  unhealthful  vocations 
that  should  be  shunned  by  those  who  can  avoid  them  until 
they  have  been  made  far  less  dangerous  than  they  now  are. 

This  may  not  always  be  possible,  however.  You  may  be 
obliged  to  work  near  dangerous  machinery  or  in  a  badly  ven- 
tilated room.  But  these  things  you  can  do  :  use  caution  when 
near  the  machinery,  try  your  best  to  secure  more  healthful 
conditions  in  the  workroom,  and  during  nonworking  hours 
plan  to  restore  your  vitality  daily  by  proper  habits  of  rest, 
sleep,  and  recreation. 

EXERCISES 

1.  If  your  lungs  are  weak,  what  occupations  should  you  especially 
avoid .'' 

2.  If  your  eyes  are  poor,  what  occupations  should  you  especially 
avoid  ? 

3.  In  some  high-grade  stores,  banks,  office  buildings,  and  factories 
you  have  visited,  what  arrangements  were  made  for  ventilation,  lighting, 
heating,  drinking  water,  wash  rooms,  janitor  service .'' 

4.  Of  what  importance  are  these  essentials  of  hygiene?  Have  \()u 
ever  visited  a  store,  factory,  or  the  like,  where  they  were  neglected  ? 

6.  What  conclusions  from  this  discussion  of  healthfulness  can  }()u 
draw  for  your  personal  guidance  as  to  a  choice  of  vocation  ?  as  to  a 
choice  of  a  particular  firm  with  which  to  work  in  this  vocation  '^ 

Safety.  i.  77ic  dijfercucc  in  tlic  safety  of  sonic  I'oca- 
tions.  Some  vocations  are  not  safe.  Do  you  know  that  it  is 
more  dangerous  to  work  in  certain  occupations  than  it  was 
to  be  a  soldier  in  the  Civil  War  —  that  insurance  companies 
refuse  to  take  such  risks  }  In  Allegheny  County,  I^ennsyl- 
vania,  the  county  in  which  Pittsburgh  is  located,  the  month 
of  January,  1907,  saw  60  death  accidents  ;  Februarv,  36  ; 
March,  43;   April,   51.     If  it  had  not  become  so  common 


14  OCCUPATIONS 

as  to  be  no  longer  "  news,"  every  daily  paper  could  tell  of 
switchmen  being  crushed  between  cars,  firemen  mangled  in 
train  wrecks,  structural  workers  falling  from  high  girders, 
hurrying  messengers  run  over  b\-  automobiles,  factory  em- 
ployees losing  arms  in  hcav\-  machinery.  Death  lurks 
in  unprotected  belts,  big  stamping  machines,  buzz  saws,  the 
haste  and  confusion  of  building  operations,  street  crossings, 
and  switch  yards.  Your  life  represents  your  most  valuable 
investment,  it  is  your  most  precious  possession.  And  when 
insurance  companies,  composed  of  shrewd,  farsighted  men 
whose  specialty  it  is  to  estimate  danger,  refuse  to  accept  your 
risk,  is  it  good  business  on  your  part  to  ignore  these  dangers 
in  selecting  your  vocation  ? 

2.  7/ir  iviprovcmcnt  of  coiu/ifious  of  safety  in  dangerous 
vocations.  \\'hile  some  vocations  arc  by  nature  safer  than 
others,  still  even  the  dangerous  ones  can  be  made  safer  than 
they  are  now.  A  number  of  years  ago  brakemen  were  com- 
pelled to  step  over  the  rails  and  stand  between  the  cars  when 
coupling  them.  So  maiiy  brakemen  slipped  or  stumbled  and 
were  run  over  by  the  car  trucks,  or  had  their  hands  crushed 
bv  the  bumpers,  that  automatic  couplers  have  for  some  years 
been  required  by  law.  The  United  States  Steel  Corporation, 
alarmed  at  the  death  toll  in  their  mills,  organized  commit- 
tees of  safety  to  inspect  the  shops  regularly.  By  guarding 
belts,  gear  wheels,  etc.,  and  impressing  all  cm]3loyces  with 
the  slogan  "  Safety  First,"  they  have  very  much  reduced  the 
number  of  accidents.  What  the  Steel  Corporation  has  done 
is  also  being  done  by  liundreds  of  other  manufacturing  and 
railroad  companies.  Most  states  have  passed  laws  for  safety, 
and  inspectors  see  that  the  rccjuirements  are  cairied  out. 

It  is  to  )'our  interest,  as  a  young  man  about  to  enter  a 
vocation,  to  consider  safety  as  one  of  the  desirable  elements. 
And  if  you  decide  to  work  in  a  somewhat  dangerous  occupa- 
tion, give  preference  to  the  employer  who  considers  the  .safety 
of  his  employees  and  do  your  part  by  cooperating  with  him. 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION       15 

EXERCISES 

1.  Mention  several  occupations  in  which  a  workman  might  have  his 
hand  crushed  or  might  lose  an  arm  or  a  foot. 

2.  Which  occupations  are  especially  dangerous?  Which  ones  are 
especially  safe?  (Your  local  insurance  agent  will  help  you  on  this.  Ask 
him  how  his  company  classes  risks.) 

3.  What  is  meant  by  "  workmen's  compensation  laws ''  which  state 
legislatures  are  passing?   Secure  a  copy  of  such  a  law  if  your  state  has  one. 

4.  What  rules  can  be  drawn  up  on  how  to  avoid  accidents?  (See 
Tolman  and  (juthrie,  Hygiene  for  the  Worker,  pp.  151,  152.) 

Advancement.  i.  Aiidrciv  Carnegie's  advancement. 
Andrew  Carnegie  began  his  manufacturing  career  as  a 
"bobbin  boy"  at  ^1.20  a  week.  He  tells  the  story  himself 
in  his  "  Empire  of  Business  "  : 

I  have  had  to  deal  with  great  sums.  Many  millions  of  dollars  have 
since  passed  through  my  hands.  But  the  genuine  satisfaction  I  had 
from  that  one  dollar  and  twenty  cents  outweighs  any  subsequent  pleas- 
ure in  money-getting.  It  was  the  direct  reward  of  honest  manual  labor ; 
it  represented  a  week  of  very  hard  work  —  so  hard  that,  but  for  the  aim 
and  end  which  sanctified  it,  "slavery"  might  not  be  much  too  strong  a 
term  to  describe  it. 

For  a  lad  of  twelve  to  rise  and  breakfast  every  morning,  except  the 
blessed  Sunday  morning,  and  go  into  the  streets  and  find  his  way  to  the 
factory  and  begin  to  work  while  it  was  still  dark,  and  not  be  released 
until  after  darkness  came  again  in  the  evening,  forty  minutes'  interval 
only  being  allowed  at  noon,  was  a  terrible  task. 

But  I  was  young  and  had  my  dreams,  and  something  within  always 
told  me  that  this  would  not,  could  not,  should  not  last —  I  should  some 
day  get  into  a  better  position. 

As  we  all  know,  he  did  get  a  better  position.  He  soon  be- 
came a  fireman  in  another  factory,  was  next  set  to  keeping 
the  books,  and  at  fourteen  became  messenger  boy  in  a  Pitts- 
burgh telegraph  office.  Then  he  learned  telegraphy,  became 
clerk  and  operator  for  the  superintendent  of  the  Penns)lvania 
Railroad  Company,  and  later  advanced  to  a  division  superin- 
tendency  on  the  same  road. 


l6  OCCUPATIONS 

He  invested  in  some  Adams  Express  stock,  took  a  part 
interest  in  the  company  which  made  the  first  sleeping  cars, 
finally  resigned  his  railroad  position  to  organize  a  new  steel- 
bridge-building  company,  and  thus  developed  into  the  world's 
foremost  steel  king.  And  this  is  the  way  Andrew  Carnegie 
worked  his  way  up. 

2.  The  respoiLsibihty  of  the  yojtng  icorkcr.  You  also 
purpose  to  become  a  man  of  importance.  You  may  find 
a  promising  position  which  not  only  pays  well  at  the  start 
but  offers  steady  advancement.  Or  it  may  be  that  the  only 
position  open  to  you  will  be  a  very  humble  one  like  Andrew 
Carnegie's  first  job.  In  either  case,  in  order  to  rise  you  must 
grow.  Much  depends  on  yourself.  Are  you  willing,  if  need 
be,  to  toil  hard  with  little  pay  at  the  start,  to  go  out  of  your 
way  to  do  things,  and  to  learn  things  that  touch  your  present 
work  on  all  sides  }  Are  you  determined  to  please  your  em- 
ployers and  all  whose  labors  interlock  with  yours  }  Are  you 
industrious,  studious,  thoroughgoing,  gentlemanly,  honorable .' 
—  for  much  depends  on  yourself. 

3.  The  opportiDiity  in  the  position.  Much  also  depends 
on  the  position.  In  .some  positions  a  young  man  learns 
nothing  and  cannot  grow.  Ten  years  finds  him  receiving 
the  same  wage,  and  with  his  mind  cramped  and  distorted 
like  a  twisted  tree.  So,  while  we  are  naturally  interested 
in  good  pay,  we  must  not  be  misled  by  too  large  wages 
at  the  start  in  a  vocation  which  does  not  offer  us  steady 
growth,  added  responsibilitv,  and  a  decided  advancement  in 
.salary.  There  are  positions  and  vocations  in  which  an  ambi- 
tious young  man  is  ever  advancing  ;  as  in  a  good  school,  he 
goes  from  class  to  class  until  finally  he  graduates,  but  in  tins 
case  he  pas.ses  up  into  a  membership  of  the  firm  or  into 
some  other  position  that  has  been  his  goal  for  years.  Truly, 
we  mu.st  bear  in  mind  in  choosing  our  life  work  that  a  good 
start  is  not  enough  ;  it  is  the  steady  advancement  and  2( 
worthy  goal  that  all  should  seek. 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  VOCATION       1 7 

EXERCISES 

1.  Explain  how  good  pay  at  the  start  is  of  less  importance  than  tlu, 
opportunity  for  continued  advancement. 

2.  What  is  meant  by  a  "  blind-alley  "  position  ?  Why  do  so  many 
young  men  accept  such  a  position  ? 

3.  If  you  should  secure  a  position  that  offered  a  promising  future, 
how  would  you  plan  to  work  up  to  the  top  ? 

4.  If  you,  as  president  of  some  large  corporation,  needed  a  general 
manager,  would  you  employ  some  manager  working  for  a  competing 
company  or  would  you  place  your  assistant  general  manager  in  full 
charge,  raise  the  superintendent  to  assistant  general  manager,  and  so 
promote  all  along  the  line? 

Social  standing,  i.  Its  partial  dcpoidciicc  upon  the  vo- 
cation. There  was  a  time  when  a  young  man  ambitious 
to  stand  high  socially  thought  that  he  must  enter  one  of 
the  professions.  This  conception  probably  came  as  a  tra- 
dition from  England,  where  for  generations  the  clergyman, 
the  doctor,  and  the  lawyer  have  ranked  socially  near  the  aris- 
tocracy. And  to  win  this  social  advantage  many  a  young 
man  has  entered  professional  life  only  to  fail  miserably 
when  he  could  have  succeeded  admirably  as  a  merchant,  a 
machinist,  or  perhaps  as  a  farmer. 

The  traditional  social  standing  accredited  to  some  of  the 
various  life  occupations  still  persists  to  a  degree,  and  influ- 
ences many  boys  unwisely  in  the  choice  of  their  life  work ; 
but  fortunately  in  democratic  America  men  are  now  receiving 
more  and  more  that  esteem  from  the  public  which  their  serv- 
ices and  personal  worth  entitle  them  to  receive,  regardless  of 
whether  they  have  served  their  fellow  men  in  a  professional 
calling,  in  manufacturing,  or  as  skilled  artisans.  Naturally 
there  is  still,  and  perhaps  always  will  be,  a  sort  of  vocational 
aristocracy  composed  of  those  callings  which  demand  native 
ability  of  a  high  order  and  a  prolonged  and  expensive  educa- 
tion, and  which  thus  exclude  all  but  a  comparati\'ely  few  who 
can  meet  their  exacting  requirements.    Again,  there  is  the 


1 8  OCCUPATIONS 

other  extreme,  that  multitude  of  occupations  which  require  no 
special  qualifications  nor  education  and  whose  workmen  are 
termed  unskilled  labor  —  these  occupations  are  generally  over- 
crowded and  naturally  offer  the  least  promise  of  social  standing. 
2.  Its  greater  depeiideuee  upon  the  worker.  As  a  rule, 
a  young  man  in  any  life  work  requiring  some  special  native 
ability  and  a  fair  educati(jn  may  expect  to  attain  with  reason- 
able surety  that  social  standing  for  which  his  financial  suc- 
cess and  his  personal  traits,  including  his  public-spiritedness, 
entitle  him.  So  we  can  say  with  assurance,  do  not  be  afraid 
because  of  social  considerations  to  follow  the  life  calling  for 
which  you  seem  to  be  best  adapted  in  nati\'e  ability,  personal 
inclination,  and  special  preparation.  Again,  in  the  long  run, 
the  community  usually  esteems  most  highly  that  man  who 
has  lived  and  worked  with  human  welfare  nearest  his  heart, 

EXERCISES 

1.  \Vhat  vocations  that  you  know  sometliing  about  seem  to  possess 
good  social  standing?  Is  it  the  vocations  themselves  that  give  this 
standing  or  the  excellence  of  the  men  engaged  in  them? 

2.  In  your  communilv  is  it  the  professional  men  or  the  successful 
men  in  other  life  occupations  who  seem  to  receive  tlie  most  respect 
from  the  public? 

3.  Draw  up  a  list  of  at  least  ten  vocations  which  you  think  from 
their  requirements  and  from  the  service  they  render  deserve  good 
social  standing. 

4.  Make  a  Hst  of  ten  prominent  Americans  of  to-day.  What  does 
each  do  for  society  ?  What,  broadly  considered,  does  he  receive  for  his 
services  ? 

Personal  suitability,  i.  Patrick  Hi  )iry  s  personal  apti- 
tude for  law.  As  a  youth  Patrick  Ilciuy  was  an  idler. 
Historians  now  say  splendid  things  about  him,  but  there 
was  a  time  when  his  neighbors  called  him  a  vagabond. 
He  tried  one  thing  after  another,  but  every  venture  failed 
miserably.    He  was  foolishl\-  manied  when  not  yet  out  of  his 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  GOOD  \'()CATI0N       19 

teens,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty-three  the  usual  failure  of  his 
every  project  —  this  time  a  country  store  —  left  the  youthful 
Patrick,  now  with  a  wife  and  three  children  to  support,  in 
sorry  straits  indeed.  He  turned  to  law.  The  beginning  was 
slow,  but  the  Parsons'  Case  fired  him  with  enthusiasm  for  his 
new  calling,  and  he  forged  ahead  to  become  the  most  cele- 
brated lawyer  of  his  day.  Patrick  Henry  failed  for  a  time, 
and  failed  miserably,  until  he  entered  the  vocation  for  zohich 
he  ivas  fitted.  You  too  will  find  remuneration,  healthfulness, 
safety,  advancement,  social  esteem,  all  to  be  important,  but 
do  not  forget  personal  suitability. 

2.  Xatural  aptitude  phis  traijiiiig  as  /actors  in  a  suc- 
cessful career.  All  men  are  not  alike.  As  bovs,  some  by 
nature  take  to  mechanics.  They  like  to  work  with  hammer 
and  chisel  and  the  clock  that  won't  run.  How  dull  to  them 
would  life  be  in  a  library  working  over  names  which  fairly 
'thrill  another  boy  —  Scott,  Shakespeare,  Stevenson,  Kipling! 
Natural  qualifications  may  peculiarly  fit  you  for  some  one 
vocation.    Out  of  it  you  are  ill  at  ease,  in  it  all  goes  well. 

But  natural  qualifications  are  not  everything.  Training, 
education,  cultivation  are  important.  They  take  the  crude 
natural  qualifications  and  shape  them  for  success.  You  may 
have  the  taste  for  accuracy,  neatness,  and  figures.  Training 
can  make  of  you  a  high-grade  accountant.  .In  other  words, 
education  may  further  fit  you,  may  adjust  you  to  a  vocation 
when  natural  qualifications  alone  would  not  suffice. 

3.  The  importance  of  an  easy  access  to  special  prepara- 
tion. Now  it  may  be  that  you  have  ready  access  to  the  special 
preparation  required  for  some  calling.  Other  boys,  perhaps, 
must  travel  far,  hold  mean  positions,  and  struggle  for  years 
to  fearn  what  you  can  easily  gain  from  your  father.  All  his 
life  he  has  been  storing  up  this  valuable  information.  It  is 
yours  for  the  asking.  Therefore,  if  your  father's  calling  ap- 
peals to  you  as  a  life  work,  your  father's  being  in  it  may  be  a 
considerable  advantage.    A  somewhat  similar  advantage  may 


20  OCCUPATIONS 

be  in  your  location.  You  may  live  in  a  great  manufacturing 
center ;  the  attraction  then  would  be  toward  a  manufactur- 
ing career.  Or  your  home  may  be  in  a  great  city ;  com- 
merce would  now  make  a  strong  appeal.  Or  your  home 
may  be  just  across  the  street  from  a  famous  technical  school; 
a  technical  education  here  would  be  tempting.  Other  things 
being  equal,  going  into  a  vocation  where  you  have  the  best 
chance  for  preparation  simply  means  taking  advantage  of 
the  opportunities  which  are  peculiarly  yours. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Should  a  boy  follow  his  father's  vocation.''  Discuss  the  pros  and 
cons. 

2,  Does  your  community  afford  special  training  advantages  for 
entering  any  particular  calling?  If  so,  is  there  a  liability  that  many 
local  boys  personally  unqualified  for  this  calling  will  take  the  training 
and  become  vocational  misfits? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Earnings  of  Wage-Earners.  Bullcliii  gj,  I^ureau  of  the  Census,  Wash- 
ington, D.C.,  igoS. 

East.max,  Crystal.  Work-Accidcnls  and  the  Law.  Charities  Publica- 
tion Committee,  New  York,  1910.    $1.50.^ 

Neaking,  Scott.  Wages  in  the  United  States.  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, New  York.    $1.25.^ 

ToLMAN  and  Gi'thkuc.  Hygiene  for  the  Worker.  American  Book 
Company,  New  York,  191 2.    50  cents. 

WiNSLOW,  C.  E.  A.  Health  of  the  Worker.  Printed  and  distributed 
by  the  Metropolitan  Life  Insurance  Company  for  the  use  of  its 
policy  holders,   1913. 

^  In  the  Readings  and  References  prices  are  given  merely  as  conven- 
ient guides  to  the  user  of  this  book  in  estimating  the  probable  cost  of  the 
books  he  will  need,  .\lthough  care  has  been  taken  in  ascertaining  these 
prices,  responsibility  is  disclaimed  for  any  inaccuracies. 


CHAPTER  III 

HOW  TO  STUDY  VOCATIONS 

It  is  at  all  times  to  be  kept  sharply  in  mind  that  the  schools  are  not  only 
to  educate  people  in  order  that  they  may  be  educated,  but  also  to  educate 
them  in  order  that  they  may  do  things.  —  Andrew  S.  Drapkk 

The  best  social  service  which  the  average  man  can  perform  is  to  do 
his  regular  work  well.  —  Thum.\s  N.  C.vrver 

To  hold  a  position  which  suits  you  in  every  way  is  surely 
ideal.  Like  all  ideals  worth  while  this  may  be  hard  to  real- 
ize, yet  in  the  measure  that  it  is  attained  a  successful  career 
results.  Such  a  career,  however,  is  not  gained  by  mere  dream- 
ing. It  is  well  to  think  of  the  future,  of  the  great  position 
with  high  salary,  power,  and  social  position  ;  but  do  not  stop 
at  that.  If  you  do,  you  are  a  visionary,  and  visionaries  never 
succeed  in  life.  Dream  grand  dreams  —  then  go  out  and 
hustle  to  make  them  real.  While  your  desire  is  to  be  a  great 
merchant,  banker,  or  contractor,  your  opening  job  mav  be  as 
humble  clerk,  office  boy,  or  apprentice. 

The  investigation  of  many  vocations  before  selecting  a  life 
calling.  It  is  because  you  are  thus  obliged  to  start  at  the 
bottom  and  only  after  several  years  can  work  up  into  a  really 
satisfactory  position  that  care  must  be  taken  to  put  this  hard 
preliminary  work  into  the  particular  vocation  you  will  later 
on  occupy  as  a  man  of  influence.  If  you  knew  that  in  a 
certain  place  the  gold  ore  became  richer  the  deeper  the 
picks  went,  would  you  not  be  very  deliberate  about  selecting 
the  particular  place  to  sink  the  shaft  ?  It  would  be  clear 
that  a  miner  who  dug  five  years  in  one  place,  two  years  in 
another,  three  years  in  a  third,  would  be  the  loser  by  so 


22  OCCI'PATIOXS 

much  because  his  efforts  were  spent  on  inferior  ore.  So  we 
say,  do  some  prospecting  before  you  begin  to  sink  deep 
shafts  in  the  vocation  mines. 

At  the  start  let  us  take  a  brief  survey  of  the  whole  field. 
There  is  first  to  be  considered  agriculture.  Then  the  various 
openings  in  commercial  occupations  are  to  be  investigated. 
Next  comes  railroading,  followed  by  civil  service  and  manu- 
facturing. After  these  we  shall  pass  to  trades  —  the  building 
and  the  machine  trades.  Engineering,  too,  must  come  in  for 
due  consideration.  Then  we  shall  study  the  learned  profes- 
sions, such  as  medicine  and  law.  Finally  there  are  a  number 
of  miscellaneous  and  new  openings  to  be  investigated,  and 
our  survey  of  vocations  is  then  completed.  An  extensive 
field,  is  it  not  ?  It  would  have  to  be  such  since  it  concerns 
the  life  work  of  millions  of  men. 

The  study  of  both  interesting  and  uninteresting  vocations. 
It  is  very  likely  that  some  vocations  interest  you  more  than 
others  ;  that  you  have  long  thought  of  some  one,  or  maybe 
two,  of  these  vocations  ;  that  you  have  visited,  more  than 
once,  places  where  men  worked  in  this  \-ocation,  and  have 
talked  with  several  of  these  men.  Perhaps,  when  the  new 
magazine  is  laid  upon  tlu-  drawing-room  table  or  you  sit  down 
before  the  row  of  magazines  in  the  library,  you  read  first  of 
all  the  article  telling  about  the  new  bridge,  or  the  lawyer's 
big  case,  or  the  wonderful  methods  of  farming  being  worked 
out  in  a  school  of  agriculture.  Every  month  it  is  the  same. 
You  enjoy  articles  telling  about  a  certain  vocation  because 
til  is  life  career  captivates  you. 

In  studying  this  book,  when  you  come  across  positions 
which  interest  you  particularly,  give  them  special  attention. 
This  does  not  mean,  however,  that  you  are  to  turn  hastily 
through  the  book,  decide  offhand  which  are  important,  and 
plan  to  give  little  study  to  others.  These  "'  others  "  repre- 
sent callings  followed  by  millions  of  men.  Hence  you  will 
find   that  a   study  of  vocations   is   going   to  be   extremely 


HOW  TO   STUDY  VOCATIONS  23 

valuable  to  you  outside  of  the  help  it  will  be  in  your  own  life 
work.  "No  man  liveth  unto  himself  alone."  The  really  large 
life  is  that  which  ox'erHows  self  at  every  turn.  And  that 
sympathetic  understanding  needed  by  the  man  who  deals 
with  others  can  in  no  way  be  more  quickly  gained  than 
through  a  study  of  the  daily  work  these  other  persons  do. 
It  is  in  this  daily  work  that  long  hours  are  spent,  and  around 
it  their  life  interests  revolve. 

The  study  of  the  vocations  of  others.  It  is  not  onl}-  the 
altruistic  man  who  should  study  vocations  but  any  other  man 
who  would  be  efficient.  In  order  to  do  business,  men  must 
enter  into  relations  with  other  men.  The  merchant  studies 
his  customers,  their  tastes,  needs,  earnings,  special  peculiari- 
ties, since  in  order  to  meet  their  demands  he  must  know 
them.  He  studies  the  manufacturer  as  well,  how  his  goods 
are  made,  the  various  patterns  and  styles,  and  the  prices 
either  direct  or  by  way  of  the  w'holesaler.  Again,  he  is 
obliged  to  study  transportation,  the  rates  and  service  af- 
forded by  freight,  express,  or  parcel  post.  In  fact,  if  all 
his  business  relations  were  mapped  out  on  a  chart,  it  could 
be  readily  seen  that  the  successful  merchant  needs  a  wide 
range  of  information  concerning  people  and  their  various 
occupations. 

The  same  is  true  of  a  manufacturer :  as  one  of  them 
expresses  it,  "  My  business  gets  me  into  a  little  of  every- 
thing." The  cases  of  men  in  other  vocations  do  not  differ 
greatly.  The  lawyer,  when  his  client  is  a  farmer  bringing 
suit  against  another  farmer,  needs  the  viewpoint  of  the  rural 
man,  and  because  his  clientele  represents  many  different 
classes  of  people  he  must  be  a  well-informed  man.  The 
clergyman  too  should  understand  the  banker,  the  butcher, 
the  broker,  the  liveryman,  else  how  can  he  most  wisely  min- 
ister to  their  needs  ?  Every  man's  business  connects  him 
with  many  other  men  :  society  is  a  network  of  relationships  ; 
and  whoever  wants  to  serve  society  well  must  know  people 


24  OCCUPATIONS 

in  that  which  comes  closest  to  the  heart  —  their  daily  work. 
The  efficient  man,  consequent!}-,  whatever  his  own  calling, 
should  study  the  vocations  of  others. 

Comparison  with  facts  of  local  vocations.  How  can  you 
best  use  and  supplement  this  book  in  your  stud)'  of  vocations  ? 
There  are  several  practical  ways  in  which  you  can  do  this. 

1.  Use  of  the  general  infonnation  eoncerning  vocatioiis 
as  a  basis  for  eoniparison  with  local  information.  In  a  letter 
recently  received,  the  writer,  a  well-known  efificiency  expert, 
says,  "In  Detroit  in  the  automobile  business,  machine-tool 
tenders  earn  as  high  as  $5  and  S6  a  day,  whereas  in  other 
sections  the  average  wage  will  not  run  above  $2  or  $2.25 
a  day."  Suppose  this  book  states  in  general  the  wages  of 
machine-tool  tenders.  Would  this  general  information,  with 
no  supplementing  of  local  facts,  be  of  much  practical  value 
to  you  ?  The  Detroit  high-school  boy  might  sa}' :  "  That 's 
too  low.  They  get  more  than  that  right  here  in  our  shops." 
The  St.  Louis  high-school  boy  might  say  :  "  That 's  too  high. 
My  father  gets  less,  and  he  's  a  good  workman  too." 

Since  conditions  and  wages  vary  widely,  you  can  easily 
see  the  impracticability  of  giving  definite  and  detailed  in- 
formation which  will  apply  to  different  parts  of  the  country. 
Hut  it  is  with  the  particular  conditions  in  your  own  commu- 
nity that  you  are  to  deal.  Hence  the  importance  of  getting 
local  information  ;  it  applies  to  \-ou  directly. 

2.  Use  of  a  simple  questionnaire.  It  would  be  well  for 
your  class  or  school  to  have  printed  enough  copies  of  a  voca- 
tional questionnaire  so  that  each  student  might  investigate  at 
first  hand,  record  his  findings,  and  then  report  to  the  class 
on  at  least  twenty-five  life  occupations.  The  questionnaire 
recommended  for  this  work  of  investigating  local  occupations, 
that  is,  for  localizing  as  much  as  possible  of  the  vocational  in- 
formation found  in  this  course,  is  the  one  which  the  authors 
used  extensively  in  securing  first-hand  information  for  this 
book.    The  form,  which  should  be  enlarged  to  eight  and  a 


HOW  TO  STUDY  VOCATIONS  25 

half  inches  by  eleven  inches  with  plenty  of  space  under  such 
questions  as  will  require  the  lonp^est  answers,  is  as  follows : 

WHAT  HIGH-SCHOOL  STUDENTS  SHOULD  KNOW  ABOUT 
THF.  VOCATION   OF  

Naturk  of  \'o(:ation 

What  are  its  parf/aildr  advantages  ? 
What  are  its  most  serious  disadvantages  ? 

Remuneration 

What  is  the  salary  to  start  with? 

What  salary  could  persons  of  average  success  expect  in  their  prime  ? 

What  is  the  demand  for  regular  employment? 

How  many  years  is  the  average  active  career  in  this  vocation  ? 

Is  the  opportunity  for  advancement  rapid  or  slow? 

Natural  (jualifications 

WHiat  natural  qualifications  are  required  ? 
What  natural  qualifications  are  desirable  ? 

Preparation 

What  general  education  is  required  ? 
What  special  preparation  is  necessary  ? 

What  time  is  required  for  this  special  preparation?  What  does  it  cost? 
How  is  this  special  preparation  best  secured?    What  school,  if  any, 
would  you  suggest? 

Name Vocation Address 


3.  Talks  by  local  people.  It  will  surely  be  profitable  to 
have  some  banker  come  to  your  high  school  and  talk  to  you 
about  banking.  He  can  tell  you  all  many  things  which  will 
be  worth  hearing  and  which  may  prove  especially  valuable 
to  the  two  or  three  boys  who  have  their  eyes  on  a  banking 
career.  The  local  manufacturer  could  speak  of  his  business, 
the  dentist  could  tell  what  dentistry  offers  to  boys.    Do  not 


26  OCCUPATIONS 

forget  that  the  carpenter,  the  plumber,  the  grocer,  and  the 
station  agent  all  have  much  \aluable  information  that  you 
should  be  eager  to  hear. 

ISut  bear  in  mind  that  most  of  these  men  are  used  to  doing 
things,  not  to  talking  about  them.  Do  not  expect  as  much 
of  them  in  skilled  speaking  as  of  lawyers  and  ministers, 
whose  vocations  constantly  require  them  to  speak  in  public. 
They  come  to  give  you  facts  about  a  business,  a  trade,  or  a 
profession.  And  upon  what  they  say  in  this  connection  you 
must  bring  your  best  judgment  to  bear.  Some  speakers  will 
tell  only  the  good  things  about  their  vocation  ;  they  will  paint 
it  in  glowing  colors.  Others  see  many  disagreeable  features, 
and  the  general  tone  of  their  talk  is  discouraging.  And 
when  it  happens  sometimes  that  the  same  vocation  is  dis- 
cussed by  both  the  optimistic  and  the  pessimistic  tradesmen, 
it  is  fortunate  for  the  class  ;  since  the  result  is  likely  to  be 
a  well-balanced  picture. 

4.  Learning  of  vocations  from  people  you  meet.  Think 
how  many  vocations  daily  fall  under  your  observation.  The 
milkman,  the  paper  boy,  the  mail  carrier,  are  around  before 
you  leave  home  in  the  morning.  In  walking  down  the  street 
or  riding  on  the  trollc}',  can  }ou  not  learn  something  about 
the  vocation  of  the  man  at  your  side  ?  You  go  into  a  store  ; 
customers  are' few,  the  manager  may  be  in  a  talkative  mood  ; 
what  can  you  learn  about  the  business  } 

Most  people  are  so  interested  in  what  they  are  doing  that 
they  are  willing  to  tell  about  their  work.  Moreover,  they  are 
usually  interested  in  young  men  and  are  willing  to  discuss 
with  them  the  pros  and  cons  of  their  own  vocation.  How- 
ever, much  depends  on  the  s])irit  in  which  a  person  is  ap- 
proached. If  he  feels  that  his  private  affairs  are  being 
pried  into,  he  will  become  suspicious  and  stop  talking. 
But  if  he  understands  your  motive,  usually  he  will  be  found 
willing  to  disclose  everything  except  what  is  of  a  purely 
confidential  nature. 


HOW  IX)  STUDY  VOCATIONS  27 

5.  Visits  to  places  of  vocatio7ial  interest.  Benjamin  Frank- 
lin in  his  "Autobiography"  gives  the  following  quaint  ac- 
count of  how  his  vocation  was  selected  : 

I  continued  thus  employed  in  my  father's  business  for  two  years, 
that  is,  'till  I  was  twelve  years  old ;  and  my  brother  John,  who  was  bred 
to  that  business,  having  left  my  father,  married,  and  set  up  for  himself 
at  Rhode  Island,  there  was  all  appearance  that  1  was  destined  to  supply 
his  place,  and  become  a  tallow-chandler.  But  my  dislike  to  the  trade 
continuing,  my  father  was  under  apprehensions  that  if  he  did  not  find 
one  for  me  more  agreeable,  I  should  break  away  and  get  to  sea,  as  his 
son  Josiah  had  done,  to  his  great  vexation.  He,  therefore,  sometimes 
took  me  to  walk  with  him,  and  see  joiners,  bricklayers,  turners,  braziers, 
etc.,  at  their  work,  that  he  might  observe  my  inclination,  and  endeavor 
to  fix  it  on  some  trade  or  other  on  land.  .  .  .  My  father  at  last  fixed 
upon  the  cutler's  trade,  and  my  Uncle  Benjamin's  son  Samuel,  who  was 
bred  to  that  business  in  London,  being  about  that  time  established  in 
Boston,  I  was  sent  to  be  with  him  some  time  on  liking.  But  his  expec- 
tation of  a  fee  with  me  displeasing  my  father,  I  was  taken  home  again. 

From  a  child  I  was  fond  of  reading,  and  all  the  little  money  that 
came  into  my  hands  was  ever  laid  out  in  books.  .  .  .  This  bookish 
inclination  at  length  determined  my  father  to  make  me  a  printer, 
although  he  had  already  one  son  [James]  of  that  profession.  .  .  . 
In  a  little  time  I  made  great  proficiency  in  the  business,  and  became  a 
useful  hand  to  my  brother. 

The  world  is  much  indebted  to  the  influences  that  made 
Franklin  a  printer.  Had  he  become  a  sailor  as  he  threat- 
ened to  be,  or  a  cutler  as  he  narrowly  escaped  being,  it  is 
speculation  to  say  how  greatly  this  change  in  his  life  work 
would  have  influenced  American  independence,  but  that  its 
effect  would  have  been  considerable  is  safe  to  claim. 

The  best  place  to  find  out  about  work  is  where  it  is  being 
done.  It  may  be  that  (as  in  Franklin's  case)  much  of  the 
value  of  such  trips  will  be  in  the  general  information  ob- 
tained, and  that  so  far  as  finding  a  suitable  vocation  is 
concerned,  the  chief  result  will  be  in  showing  the  boy  what 
he  does  not  want  to  do.  But  he  should  keep  on  looking. 
Every  community  is  a  valuable  vocational  laboratory.    Many 


28  OCCUPATIONS 

occupations  are  represented  and  much  can  be  learned,  even 
though  it  be  a  small  town. 

The  use  of  the  exercises  and  trade  literature.  In  order 
to  make  the  general  information  of  this  book  more  helpful, 
numerous  exercises  have  been  provided  in  connection  with 
each  chapter.  It  may  not  be  possible  to  obtain  all  the  in- 
formation called  for  by  these  exercises.  Your  recitation 
hours  may  be  too  few,  or  it  may  be  that  }'ou  ha\'e  no  factor}' 
in  vour  town,  or  no  railroad,  or  no  farms  near  at  hand.  But 
at  least  give  careful  and  first-hand  study  to  as  many  voca- 
tions as  are  accessible,  since  certain  of  these  are  almost  sure 
to  bear  directly  upon  \\hat  is  to  be  your  life-career. 

At  the  end  of  each  chapter  you  will  find  listed  various 
books  and  periodicals.  Lack  of  space  forbids  a  description  of 
these,  but  their  value  for  the  study  of  vocations  can  scarcely 
be  overestimated.  Published  for  the  workers  in  a  particu- 
lar trade,  each  of  these  publications  will  prove  a  first-class 
means  of  learning  its  ins  and  outs.  So  when  you  become 
interested  in  a  certain  vocation  buy  one  of  its  books  or  sub- 
scribe for  one  of  its  periodicals.  Your  local  book  dealer  can 
secure  this  for  you,  or  if  it  is  one  listed  in  this  book  it  may 
be  ordered  directly  of  the  publisher,  since  his  address  and  the 
price  are  given  in  each  case.  The  cost,  $1.25,  ^1.50,  or 
even  $3,  is  slight  when  compared  with  the  benefit  received. 
It  is  by  no  means  a  waste  of  money,  but  rather  an  invest- 
ment. Reading  such  a  book  or  magazine  will  mean  real 
growth  to  you.  Your  producing  capacity  will  be  increased 
and  advancement  made  more  certain. 

The  profit  in  reading  vocational  books  and  magazines. 
An  assistant  to  one  of  the  big  advertising  managers  in  New 
York  City  complained  to  a  friend  recently  that  he  had  not 
been  advanced  during  the  last  three  years.  This  friend  hap- 
pened to  know  the  assistant's  superior,  and  at  an  advertising- 
club  meeting  casually  asked  him  what  progress  the  assistant 
had  been  making.    "  P'unny  thing,"  he  replied,  "that  chap 


HOW  TO  STUDY  VOCATIONS  29 

looked  to  me  like  a  live  wire.  Bright,  industrious,  careful, 
and  all  that ;  but  the  moment  we  loaded  responsibility  on 
his  shoulders  he  fell  down.  Thought  he  knew  enough. 
I  can't  seem  to  make  him  see  that  if  he  wants  to  go  ahead 
he  '11  have  to  study  mighty  hard.  I  had  to  do  it,  and  I  am 
still  at  it — I  read  every  book  on  business  subjects  that  can 
possibly  help  me.    Why  shouldn't  he?  " 

A  certain  young  business  man  well  known  to  us,  and  one 
of  the  brightest  we  have  met,  began  his  bookstore  in  a  small 
college-dormitory  room  and  has  now  built  up  an  annual  trade 
of  several  thousand  dollars.  He  has  all  sorts  of  up-to-date 
ideas,  and  is  known  among  the  college  boys  as  a  "  live  wire." 
But  in  his  office  is  a  shelf  containing  over  thirty  dollars'  worth 
of  business  books ;  he  is  always  on  the  lookout  for  a  new  one 
of  any  value  ;  and  he  reads  regularly  the  best  business  man's 
magazine  published. 

"  You  don't  mean  to  tell  us  that  a  busy  man  can  afford  to 
spend  the  time  to  read  all  those  books  you  are  talking  about.?  " 
a  middle-aged  man  objected  during  an  address  by  a  success- 
ful business  man. 

"  Personally,"  replied  the  speaker,  "  I  am  interested  in 
reading  to-day  what  men  who  do  not  read  will  be  finding 
out  ten  years  from  now." 

In  a  foot  race,  "  getting  the  jump  on  the  other  fellow  "  is 
considered  well  worth  while,  often  is  the  deciding  factor  in 
the  race.  How  much  more  important  it  is  in  life's  race,  if 
it  can  be  done,  to  get  a  ten-year  jump  on  competitors. 

It  is  sometimes  lightly  said  of  a  book,  "It's  worth  its 
weight  in  gold."  But  of  many  vocational  books  listed  in  the 
following  pages  this  is  literally  true.  For  instance,  there  is 
S.  Roland  Hall's  little  book,  "'  How  to  Get  a  Position  and 
How  to  Keep  It."  It  costs  50  cents,  but  on  a  scalepan  it 
would  balance  just  144  gold  dollars,  and  the  young  man 
who  could  not  make  that  much  out  of  it  should  read  it 
again.     It  is  safe  to  say  that  its  information  if  secured  at 


30  OCCUPATIONS 

sixteen  will  have  made  one's  earnings  $500  greater  by  the 
time  one  is  thirty-six.  And  there  are  other  books  in  these 
lists  which  perhaps  will  mean  far  more  even  than  that.  Do 
they  not  represent  investments  that  are  worth  while  .■' 

Since  this  chapter  has  concerned  itself  with  explanations 
and  directions,  it  may  be  concluded  without  the  usual  exercises, 
readings,  and  references.  You  have  doubtless  come  to  see 
what  sort  of  a  study  it  is  in  which  we  are  engaged  and  also 
something  of  how  to  use  the  text  and  the  methods  of  securing 
supplementary  information.  The  problems  of  life  which  we 
shall  consider  are  real  problems,  and  solving  them  demands 
ability.  They  will  develop  }-our  power  as  a  student,  and  in 
stud\'ing  them  you  will  have  the  added  satisfaction  of  dealing 
with  something  of  immense  practical  importance. 


PART  II 

DETAILED  STUDY  OF  THE   MOST 
IMPORTANT  LIFE  VOCATIONS 

CHAPTER  IV 

AGRICULTURE 

Look  up !  the  wide  extended  plain 

Is  billowy  with  its  ripened  grain, 

And  on  the  summer  winds  are  rolled 

Its  waves  of  emerald  and  gold.  —  William  H.  Burleigh 

When  tillage  begins,  other  arts  follow.  The  farmers,  therefore,  are  the 
founders  of  human  civilization. — Daniel  Webster 

Agriculture  and  other  occupations.  If  all  the  people  of 
the  United  States  were  drawn  up  before  you  on  one  im- 
mense plain,  three  out  of  every  ten  would  be  farmers  — 
and  by  the  side  of  these  farmers  there  would  be  enough 
other  rural  dwellers  to  equal  the  combined  population  of 
Chicago,  Philadelphia,  Saint  Louis,  and  Boston.  Upon  the 
work  done  by  these  country  people  we  are  all  dependent ; 
for  from  them  the  miller  gets  his  grain,  the  textile  manu- 
facturer his  cotton  and  wool,  the  packer  his  cattle  —  in 
short,  the  necessities  of  life  are  largely  a  result  of  their 
daily  toil.  Agriculture  is  certainly  of  basic  importance,  both 
in  its  product  and  in  number  of  workers.  What  per- 
sons in  other  occupations  are  doing  fills  so  many  columns 
in  the  daily  papers  that  we  are  apt  to  forget  that  beyond 

31 


32 


OCCUPATIONS 


the  roar  of  factories  and  crowded  streets  one  third  of  all 
our  people  live  on  farms. 

W'lien  these  farmers  set  out  to  harvest  a  bumjjer  crop, 
there  is  a  movement  of  men  and  machines  on  a  scale  so  big 
that  not  even  the  marshaling  of  great  armies  can  rival  it. 
The  extra  men  hired  for  the  annual  wheat  harvest  alone 
number  860,000.  The  strength  of  both  armies  at  Gettysburg 
was  only  175,000  men.  Both  armies  at  Waterloo  numbered 
400.000  men.    But  over  one  million  hired  men  are  already 


riowing  with  a  gas  tractor 

This  powerful  engine  pulls  ten  plows  and  readily  turns  over  as  much  as  30  acres  of 
stubble  per  day.    It  is  another  sign  of  the  American  farmers  progressiveness 


at  work  on  the  farms  before  they  are  joined  by  the  extra 
harvesters,  and  the  men  who  own  or  rent  these  farms  number 
over  two  million  more.  This  makes  a  total  force  annually  in 
the  harvest  fields  of  4,230,000  men.  So  agriculture,  although 
carried  on  in  the  countr)',  has  more  workers  than  any  other 
occupation,  whether  of  country  or  of  city. 

The  immensity  of  one  year's  agricultural  productions. 
The  number  of  bushels  in  a  year's  crop  is  so  incompre- 
hensibly large  that  it  has  become  merely  a  row  of  figures. 
The  American  cornfield  alone  is  nearly  as  large  as  either 


AGRICULTURE  33 

France  or  (icrmany,  and  the  yield  in  191 4  was  estimated  at 
2,676,000,000  bushels.  From  the  wheat  farms  in  the  same 
year  came  892,000,000  bushels,  a  golden  stream  which  would 
make  a  river  as  wide  as  Fifth  Avenue  and  five  feet  deep, 
reaching  from  Chicago  to  New  York.  Oats,  barley,  rye;  rice, 
and  buckwheat  also  were  produced  in  enormous  quantities. 
The  Department  of  Agriculture  in  191 2  stated  that  "the 
total  production  of  the  seven  cereals  amounts  to  5,609,807,000 
bushels,  a  bulk  of  food  so  large  as  to  be  entirely  beyond 
understanding." 

If  this  grain  were  put  into  two-bushel  sacks  three  feet 
long  and  sack  after  sack  laid  end  to  end,  these  sacks  would 
go  round  the  world  sixty-three  times  —  and  there  would  be 
enough  grain  left  over  to  make  a  row  of  sacks  around  the 
entire  border  of  our  country,  from  Maine  to  Washington, 
to  California,  to  Florida,  back  to  Maine  again.  And  this 
is  merely  the  cereal  crop  for  one  year. 

Add  to  this  the  enormous  productions  of  cotton,  tobacco, 
flax,  sugar.  Consider  also  that  the  annual  dairy  products  are 
worth  about  §800,000,000,  Do  not  overlook  the  poultry 
industry  either,  for  although  an  ^gg,  when  sold  in  hundred- 
dozen  quantities,  may  be  worth  only  a  cent  and  three  quarters, 
the  1,700,000,000  dozen  eggs  of  19 12  totaled  $350,000,000, 
and  the  use  of  poultry  as  food  brought  $220,000,000  more. 
It  is  by  products  such  as  these  that  the  American  farmer  has 
taken  from  the  soil  and  added  to  the  national  wealth  billions 
of  dollars.  And  a  business  of  which  such  things  as  the  fore- 
going are  true  deserves  the  consideration  of  young  men. 

Some  attractions  of  rural  life.  But  there  are  many  addi- 
tional reasons  why  agriculture  may  offer  you  a  most  attrac- 
tive life  work.  The  farmer,  cooperating  with  nature  from  seeds 
sown  in  prepared  soil  and  by  careful  culti\ation  until  the  har- 
vest time,  produces  by  far  the  most  of  mankind's  food  and 
clothing  materials  —  the  two  great  necessities  of  human  life. 
While  we  might  dispense  with  the  telephone,  the  trollc}-,  the 


34  occl:patioxs 

railroad,  the  factory,  the  department  store,  and  the  services 
of  the  various  professions,  we  could  not  live  at  all  without 
the  food  and  clothing  provided  by  the  farmer.  W'e  see, 
therefore,  that  his  services  are  fundamental  and  must  always 
continue  in  demand. 

We  have  all  heard  such  expressions,  or  slogans,  as  "  back 
to  nature"  and  "the  simple  life,"  which  mean  that  human 
beings  cannot  live  healthy,  happy,  or  complete  lives  amid 
the  complexity  of  artificial  city  conditions  as  they  could 
easily  and  naturally  do  in  the  country,  close  to  God's  great 
out  of  doors,  and  away  from  the  confusion,  competition,  and 
confined  quarters  of  the  crowded  centers.  The  simple  life, 
near  to  nature's  creatures,  whether  birds,  cattle,  pets,  flowers, 
grain,  fruit,  vegetables,  and  under  the  elevating  and  enlarg- 
ing influence  of  great  stretches  of  landscape  on  all  sides  and 
of  the  limitless  sky  above  —  this  simple  living  in  childhood 
and  youth  has  furnished  our  cities  and  our  whole  country 
with  the  largest  part  of  their  great  men. 

The  varied  qualifications  demanded  for  agriculture.  To 
work  with  living  things,  to  see  them  grow  and  to  help  them 
develop  into  as  nearly  perfect  creatures  as  possible,  and  to 
feel  that  one  is  producing  and  providing  the  necessities  of 
human  existence,  such  an  occupation  to  a  thoughtful  person 
must  be  highly  ennobling.  To  re-create  poor  or  worthless 
fruit  or  vegetables  into  delicious,  nf)urishing,  and  almost  per- 
fect specimens,  to  improve  milch  cows  so  that  one  animal 
can  produce  more  cream  than  two  or  three  formerly  j)ro- 
duced,  to  make  two  ears  of  corn  grow  where  before  only  one 
grew,  to  transform  thousands  of  square  miles  of  desert  land 
into  highly  productive  farms,  and  to  put  into  operation  such 
marvelous  labor-saving  machines  as  the  binder,  the  thresher, 
and  the  gas  tractor  —  such  are  a  few  of  the  mighty  works 
wrought  by  our  agricultural  specialists.  Clearly,  to  be  an 
expert  in  such  profound  and  far-reaching  activities  requires 
natural  abilit\-,  education,  special  training,  and  skill  of  the 


AGRICULTURE  35 

highest  order.  Indeed,  many  of  our  most  successful  farmers 
to-day  combine  in  one  person  the  quahfications  of  scientist, 
engineer,  and  business  man. 

Therefore,  if  you  enjoy  simple  fare,  the  open  country,  the 
brooks  and  woodlands,  the  meadows  and  the  hills,  the  com- 
panionship of  plant  and  animal  life,  and  if  you  have  a  good 
quality  of  brain  and  brawn  and  executive  ability,  then  farm- 
ing in  some  of  its  many  openings  may  suggest  to  you  an 
attractive  life-career. 


THE   GENERAL   FARMER 

By  far  the  greater  number  of  farmers  have  not  specialized 
in  growing  any  one  of  the  particular  products  discussed  in 
later  pages  under  Specialized  Farming,  and  hence  they  may 
be  termed  general  farmers.  In  this  section,  while  we  shall 
have  in  mind  primarily  general  farming  in  our  discussion 
of  the  social  advantages,  of  the  nature  of  the  occupation  and 
its  remuneration,  and  of  starting  and  succeeding  in  agricul- 
ture, still  much  that  we  shall  say  will  be  equally  true  of  the 
various  forms  of  specialized  farming.  And  since  so  many 
of  our  young  people  have  a  greatly  mistaken  notion  of  the 
farmer's  social  condition  and  advantages,  we  shall  first  of  all 
discuss  this  important  phase  of  his  life  work. 

Social  advantages,  i .  Improved  transportation.  Although 
here  and  there  we  may  find  a  few  backwoodsmen  to-day, 
the  modern  farmer  no  longer  lives  "  forty  miles  from  no- 
where." Railroads  have  crisscrossed  the  continent  until  only 
on  frontiers  are  homes  far  from  sight  of  train  or  sound  of 
whistle.  Trolley  lines  in  New  England  spread  out  like  a 
spider's  web ;  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois  are  served  by 
thousands  of  miles  of  track,  and  other  states  are  witnessing 
a  similar  extension  of  trolley  service. 

Along  railroad  and  trolley  line  may  be  found  thousands 
of  little  villages,  centers  of  the  thought  of  the  countryside 


36  OCCUPATIONS  ' 

as  well  as  markets  for  produce.  Farmers  can  make  trips  to 
these  villages  more  comfortabl}-  now  than  heretofore.  The 
times  are  past  when  it  took  a  whole  day  to  drive  the  ox  team 
and  lumber  wagon  to  town,  and  when  getting  stuck  in  a 
mudhole  or  breaking  down  on  the  bad  roads  was  a  frequent 
experience.  Big,  roomy  spring  wagons  now  carry  most  fami- 
lies to  town.  Top  buggies  are  used  by  the  )Oung  swains  or 
the  old  folks.  And  in  Minnesota  more  automobiles  are  owned 
b}'  farmers  than  by  villagers  !  In  these  trips  to  town  there 
is  much  visiting,  a  social  activity  which  may  develop  into  a 
farmer's  grange ;  and  much  bargaining,  which  often  ripens  into 
a  cooperative  grain  elevator,  store,  or  creamery.  Longer  trips 
than  to  the  village  may  include  picnics,  reunions,  carnivals, 
county  and  state  fairs,  and,  occasionally,  an  exposition  or  a  visit 
to  the  old  home.  These  things  broaden  the  farmer's  horizon. 
2.  Communication  by  telepJione  and  Jiiral  free  delivery. 
But  even  on  his  farm  the  rural  dweller  may  be  linked  with 
the  world.  One  of  the  ways  of  doing  this  is  to  have  a  rural 
telephone.  There  is  a  sense  of  community  life  in  knowing 
that  you  can  talk  readily  with  your  neighbors.  In  Iowa,  for 
example,  no  farmer  can  very  well  feel  '"  out  of  the  world  " 
when  the  number  of  telephones  is  about  the  same  as  the 
number  of  farms,  A  recent  United  States  census  report  on 
the  telephone  makes  the  following  statement : 

In  many  parts  of  the  country  at  a  certain  prearranged  signal,  such 
as  two  long  rings,  everyone  on  the  farm  lines  goes  to  the  telephone ; 
and  when  central  is  assured  that  practically  everybody  is  on  the  line, 
she  reads  out  any  important  matters  of  general  news  which  may  have 
come  in  during  the  day,  and  also  gives  out  the  weather  report.  In  this  way, 
throughout  large  stretches  of  the  country  the  farmer  is  better  informed  as 
to  the  events  of  the  day  than  the  busy  city  resident  whose  reading  of 
the  morning  paper  consists  of  a  glance  at  the  headlines  over  his  coffee. 

The  farmers  are  reading,  too.  Rural  free  delivery  is 
spreading  so  rapidly  that  there  are  now  more  than  40,000 
routes  over  which  mail  is  daily  taken  to  those  living  in  the 


AGRicia/rrRE  37 

country.  By  1903  this  rural  mail  service  had  increased  the 
amount  of  United  States  mail  handled  by  40  per  cent.  In 
addition  to  the  local  paper,  metropolitan  dailies  and  agricul- 
tural magazines  are  subscribed  for  and  carefully  read.  Both 
the  state  and  the  national  departments  of  agriculture  send 
out  bulletins.  In  1902  the  Department  at  Washington  sent 
out  2,000,000  of  these  bulletins;  by  191 2  the  demand  had 
increased  over  five  times.  If  the  sheets  of  farmers'  bulletins 
sent  out  from  Washington  during  the  three  years  19 10- 
191 2  were  laid  edge  to  edge,  they  would  make  a  sidewalk 
4  feet  wide,  down  which  you  could  walk  20  miles  every  day 
for  a  whole  year  and  still  have  it  stretching  out  before  you 
for  2300  miles.  Surely  an  immense  amount  of  reading  is 
being  done  on  farm  subjects. 

3.  Improvement  of  social  advantages.  While  the  social 
advantages  enjoyed  by  the  farmer  are  constantly  improving, 
it  should  be  added  that  they  depend  quite  largely  upon  the 
particular  community  and  the  particular  man.  If  the  com- 
munity is  stagnating,  the  soil  poor,  cooperation  dead,  and 
the  farmer,  like  his  community,  slovenly  and  ignorant, 
then,  of  course,  his  social  condition  will  be  decidedly  in- 
ferior to  that  enjoyed  everywhere  by  thriving,  up-to-date 
people  in  other  occupations.  But  even  such  drawbacks  as 
these  can  in  many  cases  be  improved,  and  in  hundreds  of 
instances  so  prosperous  is  the  community  and  so  success- 
ful is  the  farmer  that  he  occupies  a  position  of  high  social 
esteem  in  his  county,  and  very  often  is  a  respected  state 
and  national  figure. 

Nature  of  the  occupation  and  its  remuneration,  i.  Inde- 
pendence zoithont  large  means.  In  the  first  place,  the  farmer 
is  independent.  If  he  is  at  all  successful,  he  is  never  troubled 
with  sheriff 's  writs  of  attachment.  There  are  no  violent  changes 
in  prices  with  disastrous  panics.  He  has  no  competitor  tr)'ing 
to  get  his  position  away  from  him.  When  he  becomes  old 
he  does  not  live  in  constant  dread  of  the  day  when  he  will  be 


38  OCCUPATIONS 

called  into  the  general  manager's  ofifice  and  told,  "  I  am  very 
sorry,  but  we  shall  have  to  put  a  younger  man  in  your  place." 

1 1  is  expenses,  moreover,  need  not  be  high  even  though  he 
lives  well.  A  garden,  an  orchard,  a  few  chickens,  some  pigs, 
a  cow  or  two,  and  his  food  is  practically  all  raised  at  home.  If 
his  wife  and  daughters  are  good  cooks,  his  table  may  have 
food  whose  liberal  quantity,  variety,  and  wholesomeness  are 
denied  many  cit\'  dwellers  much  more  wealthy  than  he.  Fresh 
eggs  and  vegetables,  chicken  and  strawberries,  delicacies  to 
the  city  man,  may  all  be  his,  and  are  his  in  thousands  of  cases. 

He  lives,  for  the  most  part,  among  his  equals.  Very  few 
immigrants  —  in  1900  there  were  only  85  foreign-born  per 
thousand  white  farm  laborers  in  the  United  vStates  —  menace 
his  stiuidard  of  living.  Very  few  idle  rich  rouse  his  envy. 
Naturally,  since  our  farmers  are  so  fortunately  situated,  they 
form  the  democratic  ballast  of  our  country. 

2.  Lii^htcuiiig  tlic  Jiard  ivork  of  the  farm.  The  hard 
work  of  the  farmer  can  be  lightened,  and  is  being  lightened, 
by  labor-saving  machinery.  In  the  last  sixty  years,  for  in- 
stance, there  have  been  continual  improvements  in  corn- 
growing  machinery.  The  amount  of  work  demanded  of 
human  muscles  has  been  steadily  cut  down. 

This  was  because  inventors  [says  George  K.  Holmes^]  had  given 
to  the  farmers  the  gang  plow,  the  disk  harrow,  the  corn  planter  drawn 
by  horses,  and  the  four-section  harrow  for  pulverizing  the  topsoil ;  be- 
cause they  had  given  to  the  farmer  the  self-binder  drawn  by  horses  to 
cut  the  stalks  and  bind  them ;  a  machine  for  removing  the  husks  from 
the  ears  and  in  the  same  operation  for  cutting  the  husks,  stalks,  and 
blades  for  feeding,  the  power  being  supplied  by  a  steam  engine ;  because 
they  had  given  to  the  farmer  a  marvelous  corn  sheller,  operated  by 
steam  and  shelling  i  bushel  of  corn  per  minute  instead  of  the  old  way 
of  corn  shelling  in  which  the  labor  of  one  man  was  required  for  one 
hundred  minutes  to  do  the  same  work. 

The  result  of  this  labor-saving  machinery  has  been  that 
whereas  the  farmer  of  1855  had  to  work  on  an  average  a 

•  ^■ea^book,  I'nitcd  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  1910. 


AGRICULTURE  39 

total  of  four  hours  and  thirty-four  minutes  to  raise  i  bushel 
of  corn,  the  farmer  of  1894  could  produce  it  in  forty-one 
minutes  of  labor. 

In  raising  wheat,  likewise,  an  even  greater  saving  of  labor 
has  been  reached.  It  took  on  an  average  a  total  of  three 
hours  and  three  minutes  for  the  farmer  of  1830  to  produce 
I  bushel  of  wheat ;  the  farmer  of  1 894  could  do  it  in  ten 
minutes.  How  ?  "  The  heavy,  clumsy  plow  of  1830  had  given 
way  to  the  disk  plow  that  both  plowed  and  pulverized  the  soil 


Harvesting  grain  with  a  binder 

The  self-binder  is  rightly  regarded  as  one  of  the  world's  great  inventions.     It  has 

done  more  than  any  other  one  machine  to  save  labor  on  the  farm  and  cheapen  the 

cost  of  our  bread 


in  the  same  operation  ;  hand  sowing  had  been  displaced  by 
the  mechanical  seeder  drawn  by  horses  ;  the  cradling  and 
thrashing  with  flails  and  hand  winnowing  had  given  way  to 
reaping,  thrashing,  and  sacking  with  the  combined  reaper 
and  thrasher  drawn  by  horses."  Iron  and  steel  do  not  tire 
like  muscles,  and  horses  are  cheaper  than  men.  Rural  life 
need  not  stagnate  under  the  burden  of  labor.  A  man  may 
be  a  farmer  and  advance  intellectually. 

3.   Iiict'casing  the  yield  per  acre  and  diversified  farming. 
The  number  of  bushels,  and  consequently  of  dollars,  per  acre 


40  OCCUPATIONS 

can  also  be  increased.  In  the  medieval  ages  the  average  yield 
of  grain  was  only  6  or  8  bushels  an  acre.  Walter  of  Henley, 
who  lived  in  the  thirteenth  century,  said  that  "  threefold  the 
seed  was  an  average  harvest,  and  that  often  a  man  was  lucky 
to  get  back  his  seed  corn  and  as  much  again."  But  the  present 
American  yield  is  from  two  to  three  times  this  medieval  yield. 
And  our  most  successful  farmers  do  not  feel  satisfied  unless 
they  receive  at  least  fifteen  times  their  seed.  There  are 
farmers,  too,  who  prove  year  after  year  that  the  average  yield 
of  American  farmers  is  a  very  low  average  indeed.  While 
agricultural  science  has  had  a  wonderful  development  during 
the  last  twenty-five  years,  our  experts  tell  us  that  much 
greater  results  are  still  ahead  of  us.  There  is  such  a  thing  as 
mixing  brains  with  the  soil  —  and  growing  more  dollars. 

Closely  related  to  this  increase  in  the  yield  per  acre  is 
diversified  farming.  No  wide-awake  farmer  to-day  raises  only 
wheat,  or  corn,  or  rye.  He  grows  some  of  each  of  these, 
but  in  addition  he  raises  numerous  other  products,  such 
as  hay,  potatoes,  vegetables,  live  stock,  poultry,  bees,  etc. 
Some  special  consideration  will  be  given  several  of  these 
products  in  later  pages  under  Specialized   Inarming. 

4.  Other  waj's  of  iiic re asi)ig  profits.  The  farmer  may  in- 
crease his  profits  in  two  other  ways  :  One  is  by  cutting  down 
the  marketing  expense.  There  is  considerable  difference  be- 
tween the  selling  price  of  wheat,  corn,  and  other  products  in 
the  city  market  and  on  the  farm.  This  expense  may  be 
reduced  and  the  farmer  made  more  prosperous  in  three  ways  : 
{a)  Securing  better  roads.  The  Department  of  Agriculture 
estimates  that  hauling  a  bushel  of  grain  to  town  costs  almost 
five  and  a  half  cents  and  getting  cotton  from  the  plantation 
to  the  local  shipping  point  16  cents  per  hundred  pounds. 
Think  what  a  saving  it  would  be  if  by  better  roads  the  same 
team  of  horses  or  mules  could  haul  twice  as  big  a  load  ! 
{b)  Holding  his  products  for  better  prices.  The  farmer  is  too 
often  forced  to  sell  his  crojjs  as  soon  as  har\'ested  for  whatever 


AGRICULTURE  41 

he  is  offered.  Ready  money  for  running  expenses  or  better 
credit  arrangements  would  lielp  him  a  great  deal  in  being  able 
to  sell  his  products  when  prices  were  higher,  (c)  Joining  with 
his  brother  farmers  in  a  selling  association  —  as  is  often  done 
by  the  fruit  growers  —  and  securing  favorable  rates  and  com- 
missions. Better  prices  will  be  secured  when  the  farmer  is 
not  obliged  to  drag  his  products  over  miserable  roads  and 
take  at  once  whatever  he  may  be  offered  for  them.  By  these 
three  plans,  in  which  great  progress  is  now  being  made,  the 
farmer  becomes  a  better  marketer. 

A  second  way  in  which  the  farmer  gets  richer  is  by  the 
increase  in  the  value  of  his  farm.  In  the  ten  years  from  1900 
to  19 10  farm  lands  rose  in  value  from  $15  to  $32  per  acre. 
The  man  who  owns  a  quarter  section  may  thus,  even  though 
he  be  a  poor  farmer  and  hardly  able  to  make  both  ends  meet, 
become  richer  every  year  and,  eventually,  perhaps  well-to-do. 

It  seems  to  be  clear,  consequently,  that  if  you  become  a 
farmer  you  enter  a  calling  in  which  the  man  of  ability  has 
an  increasingly  good  opportunity  to  advance.  There  are 
farmers  in  the  great  Northwest,  for  instance,  who,  begin- 
ning with  scarcely  a  dollar,  now  have  farms  so  large  that 
a  single  crop  from  one  of  their  wheat  fields  would  provide 
about  20,000,000  loaves  of  bread  —  enough  to  give  every 
man,  woman,  and  child  in  Belgium  three  loaves  apiece. 

Starting  and  succeeding  in  agriculture,  i.  Possibilities 
of  eariiiiio;  a  farvi.  Let  us  suppose  that  you  are  an  able- 
bodied  young  man  of  twenty.  Can  you  earn  a  farm  }  Dur- 
ing the  harvest  season  on  the  farm  —  this  comes  in  vacation 
time,  and  it  is  certainly  good  experience  for  any  boy  to 
hire  out  for  the  summer  to  an  up-to-date  farmer  —  wages 
(including  board  and  lodging)  are  about  $2  a  day  in  the 
West,  not  much  more  than  half  that  in  the  South,  and  about 
25  cents  less  than  that  in  the  East  and  Middle  West.  If 
you  work  as  a  hired  hand  all  the  year  round,  the  monthly 
rate  is  from  $20  to  $30.    While  this  may  not  seem  like 


42  OCCUPATIONS 

high  wages,  it  includes  board,  lodging,  and  laundry,  and 
your  other  necessary  expenses,  such  as  clothing,  are  not  a 
serious  item.  If  the  farm  laborer  is  married,  with  the  lower 
rent  in  the  country  and  a  garden  on  which  to  produce  much 
of  his  food,  he  receives  a  larger  actual  wage  at  $30  a  month 
than  the  motorman  or  street-car  conductor  in  the  city  at  a 
salary  nominally  much  higher.  Nevertheless,  the  prospects 
of  saving  enough  for  a  good  farm  on  a  $30-a-month  salary 
alone  would  not  be  particularly  encouraging. 

Other  ways  are  open.  Many  young  men  work  for  awhile 
as  farm  laborers,  learn  all  they  can,  save  every  dollar  possible, 
and  then  begin  as  tenants.  After  farming  for  a  few  years 
and  giving  the  owner  a  share  of  the  crops  or  paying  him  a 
cash  rental,  they  have  laid  by  enough  to  purchase  a  small 
farm  of  their  own.  They  may,  however,  buy  it  after  having 
saved  only  a  part  of  its  cost,  the  remainder  of  the  selling 
price  being  secured  to  its  former  owner  by  a  mortgage  on 
the  farm.  The  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture 
made  an  investigation  several  years  ago,  in  which  their 
correspondents  were  asked  whether  it  was  reasonably  possi- 
ble for  farm  laborers  and  tenants  to  save  enough  to  buy  a 
farm  that  would  support  a  family  even  with  the  help  of  a 
mortgage,  and  the  replies  indicated  that  72  per  cent  of  farm 
laborers  and  tenants  find  it  reasonably  easy  to  acquire  farm 
ownership.  The  percentages  for  the  different  geographic 
divisions  of  the  United  States  were  all  between  70  and  »So 
—  a  remarkably  uniform  condition  of  affairs  when  the  whole 
country  is  under  consideration. 

Perhaps  you  now  live  in  a  town  or  small  city  and  already 
have  some  capital.  If  you  know  nothing  of  farming,  it  is 
wise  to  go  slowly.  Do  not  be  led  astray  by  stories  of  wonder- 
ful opportunities  "  way  off  somewhere."  The  chances  are 
ten  to  one  that  there  are  better  opportunities  near  you.  Nor 
should  you  invest  all  your  money  in  land.  Remember  that 
there  are  other  things  to  buy,  such  as  buildings,  machinery. 


AGRICULTURE 


43 


and  live  stock,  and  that  the  running"  expenses  must  be  pro- 
vided for  until  the  crops  are  harvested.  Be  cautious.  Spend 
less  than  you  would  like  to  on  machinery.  Do  not  try  to 
have  a  fully  equipped  farm  from  the  start,  but  make  it  pay 
for  its  improvements  as  you  go  along. 

2.  Education  and  trai)iing  rcqnired.  While  it  is  true  that 
most  farmers  in  the  past  have  had  only  a  common-school  edu- 
cation, this  is  no  argument  for  such  a  limited  training  now. 
On  the  other  hand,  we  find  many  of  our  most  successful 


3^ 


A  trained  larnier  at  vvurk 

This  man  understands  machinery,  soil,  crops,  and  markets.    He  is  a  graduate  of  an 
agricultural  college  and  knows  how  to  make  farming  both  profitable  and  pleasant 


young  farmers  to-day  combining  in  one  person  the  qualifi- 
cations of  scientist,  engineer,  and  business  man.  Such  ex- 
tensive qualifications  as  these  require  a  liberal  education, 
including  considerable  training  in  agricultural  and  business 
subjects.  Without  question,  if  a  prospective  farmer  can  make 
the  necessary  arrangements,  he  should  complete  a  four-year 
college  course  in  agriculture.  At  any  rate  he  ought  not  to 
consider  himself  adequately  prepared  for  farming  until  he 
has  taken  at  least  a  four-year  agricultural  and  business  course 
in  his  local  or  county  high  school. 


44  OCCUPATIONS 

The  traditional  high  school  as  a  rule  does  not  prepare 
boys  for  a  successful  career  on  the  farm.  So  fully  has  it 
been  realized  that  the  average  course  in  high  school,  and 
college  as  well,  does  not  meet  the  needs  of  young  farmers 
that  the  last  few  years  have  witnessed  a  tremendous  move- 
ment for  agricultural  education.  While  eighteen  years  ago 
not  one  public  high  school  taught  agriculture,  now  over  two 
thousand  schools  are  teaching  it.  In  1897  there  were  only 
seventy  institutions  of  any  sort  teaching  this  subject.  In 
19 1 2  the  number  of  state  and  private  colleges,  public  and 
private  agricultural  schools,  and  public  and  private  high 
schools  in  which  agriculture  was  taught  numbered  two  thou- 
sand six  hundred.  In  two  years  this  number  of  agricultural- 
teaching  schools  had  increased  three  times.  Now  over  thirty 
states  permit  or  require  instruction  in  agriculture  in  their 
public  schools.  In  about  half  as  many  states  the  law  re- 
quires that  it  shall  be  taught  in  the  elementary  schools.  In 
Nebraska,  for  example,  no  teacher  for  the  last  ten  years  has 
been  able  to  secure  either  a  first-grade  or  a  second-grade  cer- 
tificate unless  prepared  to  teach  the  elementary  principles  of 
agriculture.  A  number  of  excellent  textbooks  have  been 
published,  and  an  earnest  effort  is  being  made  to  convince 
the  country  boy  that  he  does  not  leave  practical  life  behind 
when  he  enters  the  little  white  schoolhouse. 

3.  JJ^'aj's  of  sccnnug  a  Jounvlcdgc  of  successful  farming. 
So  if  }ou  are  planning  to  be  a  successful  farmer  we  advise 
you  while  in  the  high  school  to  read  some  of  the  interesting 
little  textbooks  that  are  used  in  the  elementary  schools. 
Complete  the  agricultural  course  in  your  local  high  school, 
if  such  a  course  is  offered.  Better  yet,  attend  the  nearest 
agricultural  county  high  school.  There  you  will  hear  lectures 
on  soils,  seeds,  crops,  live-stock  judging,  dairying,  fruit  rais- 
ing, farm  mechanics,  etc.,  which,  with  the  demonstrations, 
discussions,  readings,  and  laboratory  work,  will  help  you  to 
become  a  prosperous  farmer.    Be  sure  to  join  one  or  more 


AGRICULTURE  45 

of  the  boys'  agricultural  clubs  that  are  springing  up  all  over 
our  country,  such  as  the  corn,  the  potato,  the  gardening  and 
canning,  the  dairy,  and  the  poultry  clubs.  These  organiza- 
tions are  for  the  most  part  under  the  direction  of  the  state 
and  federal  agricultural  departments  and  are  doing  a  won- 
derfully interesting  and  helpful  work.  We  should  perhaps 
add  that  there  are  decided  advantages  to  be  gained  in  com- 
peting for  prizes  offered  to  members  of  agricultural  clubs 
rather  than  for  those  to  be  won  at  county  fairs,  because  in 
the  case  of  the  clubs  a  boy  is  competing  with  other  boys 
and  girls  and  not  with  experienced  farmers,  and  also  because 
many  helpful  directions  and  much  instruction  are  freely 
furnished  all  competing  club  members. 

Graduated  from  high  school,  do  not  rest  content  with  the 
advantages  just  mentioned.  Some  winter  —  the  sooner  the 
better  —  attend  the  short  course  at  your  state  agricultural 
college.  There  you  will  meet  boys  from  all  over  the  state, 
and  professors  who  know  agriculture  thoroughly.  It  will 
not  cost  you  very  much  ;  it  occupies  the  six  to  eight  weeks 
of  the  slack  winter  season,  and  it  will  be  one  of  the  best 
investments  you  ever  made.  Or,  better  still,  if  you  want  to 
reach  the  top  notch  in  scientific  agriculture,  enroll  at  your 
state  agricultural  college  for  the  four-year  course.  Write  be- 
forehand to  the  president  of  the  college  asking  him  for  a  cat- 
alogue. Look  the  course  of  study  through,  and  see  how  all  the 
tough  farm  problems  that  you  never  could  straighten  out  alone 
are  here  presented  by  experts.  Bear  in  mind,  too,  when  you 
come  to  finish  the  course  that  one  of  the  criticisms  passed  upon 
the  agricultural  college  is  that  its  graduates  are  usually  men 
too  valuable  to  go  back  to  running  ordinary  farms,  but  secure 
better  positions  as  managers  of  large  farms,  creameries,  or  ex- 
perimental stations.  It  means  considerable  for  any  young  man 
to  have  such  a  practical,  much-in-demand  education  as  this. 

4.  Adding  to  your  success.  In  whatever  way  you  get 
your    education,   once    on    the   farm    do    not    go    to    seed 


46  OCCUPATIONS 

mentally.  Keep  on  gro\\ing.  Subscribe  for  several  first-class 
agricultural  papers.  These  periodicals  are  numerous,  and 
many  of  them  can  be  depended  uj^on  as  fully  reliable.  The 
references  on  pages  63-65  list  several  good  papers.  Subscribe 
for  a  year,  or  if  in  doubt  as  to  whether  they  will  meet  your 
needs,  write  to  the  publishers  for  sample  copies,  (jood  books, 
too,  are  abundant.  Is  it  not  absurd  to  keep  on  making  the 
same  costly  mistakes  year  after  year  and  perhaps  worrying 
a  great  deal  as  to  what  can  be  done  about  it,  in  many  cases 
losing  hundreds  of  dollars  and  suffering  an  amount  of  dis- 
satisfaction which  can  never  be  counted  up,  when  the  whole 
difficulty  could  be  solved  by  a  $1.25  book  ?  Authors  of  such 
books  have  faced  successfully  the  same  problems  that  con- 
front you  ;  they  have  written  down  the  answers,  and  it  is 
a  mistake  not  to  let  them  help  you  w^hen  you  are  in  trouble. 

In  ever)'  state  there  is  an  agricultural  experiment  station. 
Write  to  the  one  in  your  state,  asking  to  have  your  name 
placed  on  the  mailing  list  for  all  the  bulletins  they  publish. 
The  United  States  Secretary  of  Agriculture  will  mail  you 
on  request  a  list  which  tells  what  subjects  are  treated.  There 
will  certainly  be  several  that  will  interest  you.  You  can  then 
send  for  the  ones  you  desire,  and  they  will  be  mailed  \"ou 
free.  Keep  your  eyes  open  for  new  information  from  any 
source.  Attend  farmers'  institutes.  The  speakers  will  have 
something  of  value  for  you  e\'en  after  you  ha\"e  become 
an  experienced  farmer.  If  a  "  seed-corn  special,"  an  agri- 
cultural lecturer,  or  a  dairy  demonstrator  is  booked  for  your 
village,  be  on  hand.  While  you  may  not  agree  with  all  that 
is  said,  you  will  surel\-  hear  something  that  you  can  use 
with  profit. 

When  in  doubt,  wiite  ^•()ur  trouljlcs  to  the  i:)rincipal 
of  the  nearest  agricultural  high  school,  the  editor  of  your 
farm  paper,  the  director  of  tlie  state  experiment  station,  the 
president  of  the  state  agricultural  college,  or  the  secretary  of 
the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.    Is  it  not  effort 


AGRICULTURE  47 

thrown  away  to  keep  on  working  so  hard  in  the  broihng  sun 
trying  to  raise  a  bumper  crop  of  corn  when  a  short  letter 
to  the  state  agricultural  college  asking  about  seed  corn,  for 
instance,  might  increase  the  yield  more  than  ten  days'  extra 
toil  with  the  cultivator  ?  The  farmer  who  gets  ahead  mixes 
brains  with  the  soil.  He  will  get  ahead  faster  if  he  improves 
his  mixture  by  drawing  in  from  the  outside  some  superior 
brains.  If  the  county,  the  state,  and  the  United  States  gov- 
ernments are  paying  salaries  to  experts,  who  are  anxious  to 
help  you  free  of  charge,  why  not  let  them  do  it  ?  You  will 
certainly  be  the  gainer. 

The  question,  How  can  one  enter  and  make  a  success  of 
agriculture  ?  can  be  answered  in  a  number  of  practical  ways. 
The  young  man  with  the  proper  qualifications  can  become 
the  owner  of  a  farm,  and  the  farmer  who  pushes  his  business 
can  succeed.  In  the  sections  on  Specialized  Farming  that 
follow,  much  additional  light  will  be  thrown  upon  this  vital 
question. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Talk  with  a  successful  general  farmer  in  your  community.  How 
many  acres  has  his  farm.''  What  is  the  value  per  acre.'*  the  value  of  the 
improvements.''  of  the  live  stock?  What  are  his  most  paying  crops? 
How  much  are  his  gross  receipts  during  a  year?  What  are  his  net 
profits?  What  particular  points  about  his  farm  impress  you  most 
favorably  ? 

2.  Talk  with  some  rural  mail  carrier.  How  many  papers  are  his 
farmers  reading?  What  sort  of  papers?  Is  the  amount  and  quality  of 
this  reading  material  increasing  or  decreasing  ? 

3.  Mention  some  ways  in  which  the  parcel  post  is  benefiting  the 
farmer. 

4.  Describe  some  farming  community  that  you  believe  is  thoroughly 
progressive.  What  schools  has  it?  What  social  features?  Is  there  any 
cooperation  among  the  farmers  in  work?    in  selling  their  products? 

5.  Will  the  condidon  of  the  Eastern  farmer  be  made  better  or  worse 
by  the  disappearance  of  free  land  in  the  West  ? 


48  OCCUPATIONS 

6.  Diversified   farming   has  what  effect   on   soil  fertility?    on   the 
seasonable  demand  for  labor? 

7.  Describe    the   general    appearance    of   some    farm    that   seems 
successful.    What  conveniences  are  to  be  found  in  the  house? 

8.  Is  your  region  well  adapted  for  general  farming?  In  what  way 
can  you  become  a  general  farmer  ? 

9.  What  disadvantages  of  farm  life  seem  to  you  the  worst  ?    How 
can  they  be  overcome  ? 

10.  What  advantages  of  farm  life  appeal  most  to  you?    How  can 
these  be  increased  ? 


SPECIALIZED   FARMING 

There  are  several  lines  of  specialized  farming  that  you 
should  know  about,  since  an\'  one  of  them  may  be  developed 
into  a  substantial  business.  The  general  farmer,  as  was 
mentioned  before,  does  not  devote  his  entire  attention  nowa- 
days to  any  one  crop,  but  practices,  to  some  extent  at  least, 
diversified  farming.  He  may  find,  for  instance,  that  he  takes 
more  interest  in  fine  milch  cows  than  in  anything  else  on 
the  farm  and  thus  he  gradually  becomes  a  dairyman  ;  or  he 
may  plant  a  part  of  his  farm  to  apples  and  peaches  instead 
of  wheat  and  to  this  extent  become  a  horticulturist.  Or 
while  the  father  continues  to  run  the  farm  the  son  may 
take  charge  of  the  bees  and  develop  into  a  practical  bee- 
keeper ;  or  he  may  give  his  attention  to  chickens  and  eggs 
and  thus  become  the  poultryman  of  the  family.  A  third  and 
more  common  way  in  which  people  come  to  take  up  some 
form  of  specialized  farming  is  by  discovering  that  this  par- 
ticular branch  of  farming  can  be  best  adjusted  to  their  needs 
or  limitations.  Is  your  capital  small  .'  Then  do  not  attempt 
wheat  farming  in  the  Dakotas  ;  raising  vegetables  on  a  two- 
acre  plot  near  some  city  would  be  better  suited  to  your 
purse.  Are  you  unable  to  do  hard  physical  work  .^  Do  not 
buy  a  quarter-section  corn  farm  in  Missouri ;  perhaps  caring 


AGRICULTURE 


49 


for  several  rows  of  beehives  would  be  just  adapted  to  }'our 
strength.  Do  you  like  a  warm,  dry  climate  ?  Then  do  not 
become  a  cotton  planter  in  Louisiana  ;  try  the  orange  indus- 
try in  southern  California. 

Several  of  these  openings  will  be  described  briefly.  Think 
over  the  various  lines  of  farming  and  decide  which  interests 
you  most.  If  you  believe  you  would  like  gardening,  sub- 
scribe for  one  of  the  gardening  magazines  or  read  some  of 


Cutting  and  threshing  wheat  in  Oregon 

These  great  machines  are  not  so  common  as  they  once  were  in  the  West.  The  10,000- 

acre  grain  fields  are  giving  way  to  diversified  farming,  with  better  profits  per  acre 

and  homes  for  more  people 


the  books  on  the  subject.  Visit  some  of  the  gardens  near 
at  hand.  In  this  way  you  may  get  into  just  what  suits  you. 
The  stockman.  The  stockman  is  a  farmer  who  raises 
cattle,  horses,  mules,  and  sheep  for  the  market.  There  has 
always  been  a  steady  demand  for  his  products,  particularly 
for  the  last  ten  years,  during  which  time  their  aggregate 
value  has  increased  56  per  cent.  Not  in  all  states,  however, 
can  they  be  raised  profitably.  Considerable  space  is  required 
for  the  animals  to  range  over,  and  in  some  sections  land  is 


50  OCCUPATIONS 

too  expensive  to  permit  this.  The  great  range  countr)'  is 
west  of  the  Mississippi ;  while  the  great  corn-growing  region, 
where  cattle  are  fattened  before  shipment  to  the  stockyards, 
is  the  north  Mississippi  valley.  Consequently  New  England 
has  only  2  per  cent  of  the  cattle,  —  these  being  chiefly  dairy 
cattle,  —  while  the  states  leading  in  \alue  of  live  stock  are 
Iowa,  Texas,  Illinois,  Missouri,  Kansas,  and  Nebraska,  in 
the  order  named. 

The  usual  scenes  of  cowboy  life  shown  in  the  motion- 
picture  shows  are  rarely  true  of  the  stockman  to-day.  He  is 
more  a  farmer  than  a  bronco-busting  cowboy.  Still,  the 
life  is  a  vigorous,  out-of-door  one,  and  the  young  man  who 
is  naturally  a  good  judge  of  live  stock  and  lives  in  the  proper 
region  should  certainly  take  up  stock  raising  in  connection 
with  his  general  farming.  However,  should  he  desire  real 
ranch  life  and  nothing  else,  he  must  go  into  certain  parts 
of  Wyoming,  South  Dakota,  Montana,  Oklahoma,  or  Texas. 
There  he  can  get  work  almost  any  summer  putting  up  hay, 
and  if  he  stays  long  enough  he  may  eventually  be  called  upon 
to  rope  a  few  steers. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Why  are  the  great  stock  ranges  being  pushed  into  the  mountain 
states  ?  Why  are  they  steadily  becoming  smaller  ? 

2.  Describe  the  life  on  a  typical  Western  cattle  ranch.  (See  article 
by  Theodore  Roosevelt  in  the  Outlook,  May  24,  1913,  pp.  148-171.) 

3.  Find  out  from  your  local  butcher  where  he  gets  his  meat. 

4.  Trace  a  beef  steer  from  its  home  range  until  it  reaches  your 
local  market. 

5.  Would  raising  beef  cattle  be  profitable  near  where  you  live.'' 

6.  What  are  some  of  the  best  breeds  of  beef  cattle  ?  of  sheep  "i 

7.  Does  it  pay  a  farmer  in  your  county  to  raise  a  few  colts  each 
year  ?    to  keep  a  few  sheep  ? 

The  dairyman.  The  dairy  business,  unlike  stock  raising, 
flourishes  best  near  the  great  cities.  New  York  leads  all  states 
in  the  number  of  dairy  cows.     New  England,  its  small  size 


AGRICULTURE  5 1 

considered,  has  almost  twice  as  many  cows  as  other  parts  of 
the  United  States.  Should  you  plan  to  sell  fresh  milk  and 
cream,  care  should  be  taken  to  locate  either  within  driving 
distance  of  a  good  market  or  near  a  railroad  or  trolley  line. 
The  dairying  business  can  be  carried  on  profitably,  however, 
at  a  distance  from  consumers.  In  this  case  you  can  sell  milk 
to  the  condensed-milk  companies  or  make  the  cream,  though 
sour,  into  butter  either  at  home  or  in  cooperative  cream- 
eries, or  turn  it  over  to  local  agents  of  the  big  creameries 
which  are,  perhaps,  two  or  three  hundred  miles  away. 


A  ddii\   laini 

This  dairyman  keeps  only  choice  blooded  stock  in  his  herd.  Twice  each  day  the  milk 
is  taken  by  automobile  to  the  local  station,  where  it  is  shipped  by  express  to  the  city 

I.  Advantages  of  scientific  testing  of  milch  cows.  Dairy 
cows  vary  in  cost  from  $30  to  over  $100,  their  value  de- 
pending chiefly  upon  the  richness  and  amount  of  their  milk. 
The  past  few  years  have  shown  great  strides  in  the  scientific 
testing  and  evaluation  of  milch  cows.  At  times  it  has  been 
found  that  a  large  proportion  of  cows  did  not  pay  for  their 
feed,  to  say  nothing  of  yielding  a  profit.  Consequently  our 
wide-awake  farmers  are  removing  these  low-standard  cows 
as  rapidly  as  possible  and  are  filling  their  places  with  high- 
grade  milkers,  so  as  to  make  every  cow  in  their  dairies  a 


52  OCCLPATIONS 

unit  of  profit.  The  number  of  cows  that  dairy  farmers  keep 
runs  all  the  way  from  eight  or  ten  to  as  high  as  one  hundred  and 
fifty  or  two  hundred.  Fewer  than  sixteen  cows,  unless  you 
have  other  work,  would  not  be  enough  to  keep  you  busy  and 
to  make  a  profitable  business.  In  New  England  the  dairy- 
man has  for  every  cow  from  one  to  three  acres  of  pasture, 
with  varying  amounts  of  tillable  land.  With  a  good  system 
of  crop  rotation,  the  soil  fertility  of  his  farm  may  be  kept  up 
year  after  year. 

The  work  on  a  dairy  farm  is  exacting,  but  it  is  not  particu- 
larly hard  physically  and  is  very  satisfying  to  one  who  loves 
good  animals.  For  the  young  man  who  studies  his  business, 
replaces  poor  cows  with  high-bred  ones,  and  develops  his  dairy 
along  modern  sanitary  lines  the  outlook  is  good.  The  first- 
class  dairyman  has  long  suffered  because  consumers  could 
not  readily  tell  his  product  from  inferior  milk.  But  under 
a  better  system  of  testing  milk,  inspection  of  dairy  farms, 
and  licensing,  the  high-grade  dairyman  is  getting  his  proper 
returns.  People  are  learning  that  "  milk  is  milk  "  does  not 
hold  true  when  part  of  it  is  water  and  part  dirt,  and  they 
will  pay  a  higher  price  per  quart  for  superior  milk  and  buy 
more  of  it. 

2.  Occnpations  in  crciunerics  and  related  lines  of  busi- 
ness. There  are  also  many  openings  for  young  men  in  every 
department  of  the  creamery  business  and  related  lines,  such 
as  cheese  making,  ice-cream  making,  and  city  milk  stations. 
Some  of  the  positions  are  those  of  butter  maker  and  helper  in 
creamery,  factory  manager,  butter  buyer,  and  traveling  salesman 
for  dairy  products.  Good  butter  makers  receive  from  $60  to 
$125  per  month,  and  there  are  numerous  attractive  features 
to  this  work.  "The  country  boy,"  says  the  editor  of  the 
/hitter,  Cheese,  and  Egg  Journal,  "often  gets  a  place  to 
work  as  helper  in  the  local  creamery,  where  he  gets  his  first 
training  in  butter  making  and  in  keeping  things  scrupulously 
clean.    After   he  has  saved  some  money,  he  may  take  the 


AGRICULTURE  53 

winter  course  for  three  months  [in  the  nearest  agricultural 
college]  and  thus  fit  himself  to  run  a  creamery  or  cheese 
factory  for  himself.  If  he  can  show  himself  industrious  and 
reliable  in  a  small  factory,  his  advance  to  positions  of  more 
responsibility  in  larger  factories  is  assured." 

EXERCISES 

1.  Why  have  people  come  to  appreciate  as  never  before  the  value 
of  good  milk.^  What  laws  and  ordinances  regulate  the  dairy  business 
in  your  town  ? 

2.  Is  dairying  well  adapted  to  your  particular  locality.'' 

3.  Interview  some  dairyman.  How  many  cows  has  he?  How  many 
acres  of  pasture  ?  of  tilled  land  ?  What  is  the  total  amount  he  has 
invested.?  What  are  his  annual  profits?  In  what  ways  could  his  busi- 
ness be  improved  and  made  more  profitable? 

4.  What  is  the  difference  between  the  beef  type  and  the  dairy  type 

of  cow  ? 

5.  What  are  some  of  the  best  dairy  breeds? 

6.  How  can  you  find  out  on  which  cows  your  greatest  profits  are 
made?     How  could  you  use  this  information  to  advantage? 

7.  What  are  the  local  opportunities  for  employment  in  the  creamery 
business  and  related  lines  ? 

The  poultryman.  i.  TJic  cnonnous  value  of  poultry 
products.  The  value  of  the  poultry  found  on  the  farms 
by  the  census  enumerators  in  19  lo,  if  expressed  in  dollar 
bills  and  these  laid  end  to  end,  would  make  a  row  of  green- 
backs reaching  from  New  York  to  Boston  thirty-six  times, 
to  New  Orleans  four  times,  plus  a  string  of  bills  across  the 
continent  to  San  Francisco  and  reaching  as  far  back  again 
as  Chicago.  During  1909  a  billion  and  a  half  of  eggs  were' 
received  in  the  city  of  New  York  alone.  The  Secretary  of 
Agriculture  says  in  his  1908  report  that  "the  eggs  and 
poultry  produced  on  the  farms  are  worth  as  much  as  the  hay 
crop  or  the  wheat  crop,"  an  amount  of  some  $620,000,000 ! 


54 


OCCUPATIONS 


The  majority  of  the  eggs  are  produced  in  the  Mississippi 
valley,  not  by  professional  poultrymen  but  by  farmers  to  whom 
the  business  is  incidental.  These  farmers  in  general  pay  little 
attention  to  the  careful  handling  of  eggs.  The  rural  buyer 
for  the  commission  merchants  in  most  cases  offers  the  same 
price  for  good  and  bad  alike.    Since  the  distance  these  eggs 


A  puulti)'  l.iiin 

The  number  of  chickens  and  the  amount  of  equipment  shown  in  this  picture 

indicate  that  lack  of  capital  need  not  long  deter  a  young  man  from  b)ecom- 

ing  owner  of  such  a  farm 


are  shipped  is  often  great,  the  time  before  they  are  con- 
sumed adds  another  difficulty.  In  Kansas  alone  the  loss  on 
spoiled  eggs  amounts  to  14  per  cent  of  the  price  paid  the 
farmer.  The  total  loss  on  bad  eggs  each  year  in  the  United 
States  is  ^45,000,000.  Consumers,  too,  are  "afraid"  of 
eggs,  and  would  eat  more  of  them  and  willingly  pay  larger 
prices  if  certain  of  procuring  fresh  ones. 


I 


AGRICULTURE  55 

2.  TJie  oppoj'tmiities  of  the  sciaitific  poultryman.  This 
incidental  production  and  careless  marketing  of  eggs  by  the 
general  farmer  gives  the  professional  poultryman  an  opening. 
His  usual  location  is  either  in  the  far  East  or  the  far  West, 
but  a  first-class  market  can  be  developed  near  any  large  city. 
A  fancy  price  and  a  steady  demand  are  assured  whenever 
consumers  learn  that  they  can  depend  upon  "  strictly  fresh  " 
eggs,  that  are  never  anything  but  what  this  phrase  implies. 
Some  poultrymen  enter  into  profitable  contracts  with  com- 
mission men  supplying  a  fancy  trade,  or  with  hotels  and 
restaurants  catering  to  the  better  class  of  diners.  To  one 
who  wants  to  specialize  in  raising  poultry  for  meat  a  differ- 
ent breed  of  hen  is  desirable,  although  there  are  several  admi- 
rable breeds  equally  good  for  t^^g  production  or  meat  purposes. 

While  the  work  is  light,  it  requires  careful  attention  to 
details.  The  capital  needed  is  small ;  in  fact,  a  start  can  be 
made  on  a  small  lot  and  with  a  limited  equipment.  The 
profits  in  many  cases  are  splendid,  and  a  steady  income  is 
assured  any  young  man  who  makes  a  moderate  success  of 
this  business. 

EXERCISES 

1.  How  do  eggs  compare  with  beef  in  nutritive  value?  in  digesti- 
bility?   ('See  Far?ne?-s''  Bulletin  142.) 

2.  How  can  the  price  of  eggs  in  general  be  raised?  (See  Yearbook 
for  1910,  pp.  461-476;  for  191 1,  pp.  467-478.) 

3.  How  can  you  learn  which  of  the  hens  in  your  flock  are  the  best 
layers  ? 

4.  How  are  eggs  tested  and  graded?  Should  they  be  sold  by  the 
dozen  or  by  the  pound? 

5.  If  the  markets  are  distant,  how  can  one  carry  on  a  profitable 
poultry  business?   (See  Yearbook  for  191 2,  pp.  285-292.) 

6.  Interview  some  poultryman.  How  many  hens  has  he?  What 
breeds?  How  much  equipment  has  he?  What  expenses  does  he  have 
to  meet?  Does  he  find  raising  hens  for  eggs  or  for  meat  more  profit- 
able?    In  what  way  do  you  think  his  business  might  be  improved? 


56  OCCUPATIONS 

Market  gardening.  The  vegetables  you  see  on  sale  early 
in  the  spring  probably  come  from  the  lower  Atlantic  coast, 
a  great  winter  garden  stretching  from  Savannah,  Georgia,  to 
the  southern  section  of  New  Jersey.  Often  $500  worth  of 
berries  are  grown  on  an  acre  of  this  land,  while  yields  of 
$1000  per  acre  are  by  no  means  unknown,  and  near 
Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  one  grower  harvested  from  a 
half  acre  lettuce  to  the  value  of  $1756.  Only  approximately 
I  per  cent  of  the  land  available  is  now  under  truck  culti- 
vation, and  the  unprepared  land  can  be  bought  for  about 
$10  per  acre. 

1.  Making  tJic garden  and groiving  the  vegetables.  Many 
gardeners  have  laid  the  foundations  of  their  future  careers  by 
helping  their  mothers  till  the  back  yard  at  home.  They  en- 
joyed working  with  the  potatoes,  cabbages,  onions,  asparagus, 
tomatoes,  cucumbers,  and  melons  and  seeing  them  grow  from 
tiny  seedlings  to  maturity.  So  they  searched  out  a  little  plot 
of  ground  and  commenced.  It  does  not  take  a  great  deal 
of  money  to  set  up  in  business  as  a  market  gardener.  A 
vacant  lot  is  enough  for  a  start  and  an  acre  or  two  will 
supply  all  the  work  you  can  do  for  a  time. 

The  garden  should  be  laid  out  so  that  the  necessary  work 
can  be  done  easily.  No  raised  beds  need  be  tried,  since  they 
take  too  much  time  and  labor  and  waste  moisture.  Instead, 
after  seeing  that  the  soil  is  rich  and  well  prepared,  plant  the 
vegetables  in  long  row's  so  that  the  tilling  can  be  done  with 
wheel  tools.  Some  artificial  means  for  supplying  water  may 
work  wonders  with  your  garden  even  though  the  farmers 
around  you  never  consider  irrigation. 

2.  Marketing  the  products.  Pack  your  vegetables  when 
marketable  in  neat,  small  packages  or  baskets.  Never  dis- 
appoint your  customers  when  they  have  ordered  of  you,  and 
be  careful  tiiat  vegetables  from  your  garden  reach  them  in 
a  clean,  bright,  fresh  condition.  Keep  your  market  wagon 
painted  and  washed  so  that  it  will  be  attractive.    A  bright. 


AGRICULTURE  57 

clean  wagon  inspires  confidence  and  goes  a  long  way  toward 
making  people  feel  that  they  are  dealing  with  a  successful 
young  man. 

Unless  you  deliver  the  vegetables  directly  to  consumers 
— •  which  is  impossible  for  most  gardeners  not  doing  a  local 
business  —  the  question  of  marketing  is  more  serious.  In 
fact,  it  is  generally  easier  to  grow  vegetables  than  to  market 
them  successfully.  Shipments  go  through  a  number  of 
hands  — •  transportation  companies,  draymen,  commission 
merchants,  jobbers,  and  retail  dealers  —  before  they  reach  the 
consumer,  in  each  case  additional  time  being  consumed ;  and 
vegetables  are  perishable.  Each  middleman,  also,  charges 
for  his  services;  so  that  the  difference  between  what  the 
consumer  pays  and  what  the  grower  gets  becomes  larger  and 
larger.  It  is  estimated  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture 
that  in  the  case  of  vegetables  the  producer  receives  only 
about  one  third  of  the  price  paid  by  the  consumer. 

EXERCISES 

1.  If  you  should  take  up  market  gardening  where  you  live,  would 
you  be  likely  to  have  Japanese,  Chinese,  or  Italian  competitors.''  Could 
they  raise  fruit  and  vegetables  more  cheaply  than  you  ? 

2.  Of  what  importance  is  good  seed .''  What  are  some  of  the  leading 
seed  companies .'' 

3.  In  what  ways  can  you  get  vegetables  on  the  market  early  in  the 
season  ? 

4.  Talk  with  your  vegetable  grower.  How  much  land  has  he.''  How 
does  he  keep  it  in  good  condition  ?  How  does  he  cultivate  ?  What 
additional  vegetables  or  varieties  might  he  raise  with  profit?  What 
arrangements  for  marketing  has  he  ?  Could  he  cut  down  expenses  in 
marketing  ?    How .'' 

5.  Call  upon  your  vegetable  dealer,  or  your  grocer  if  he  handles 
vegetables.  How  much  does  he  have  invested  in  vegetables  at  any 
one  time?  How  often  does  he  turn  his  stock?  Where  does  he  get 
his  vegetables?  From  what  distances  does  he  sometimes  have  them 
shipped?    What  per  cent  does  he  estimate  is  waste? 


58  OCCUPATIONS 

6.  If  you  approached  a  city  hotel  manager  with  the  proposition  to 
supply  him  fresh  vegetables,  what  arguments  would  you  use  to  get  his 
permanent  trade  ? 

7.  Could  you  develop  standardized  baskets  of  vegetables  at  25  cents, 
50  cents,  and  75  cents,  which  housewives  would  come  to  know,  depend 
upon,  and  order  by  telephone?  Ask  your  mother  what  different  vegetables 
and  what  proportions  of  each  should  be  placed  in  such  family  baskets. 

The  fruit  grower.  A  good  way  to  test  yourself  as  a  fruit 
grower  is  to  begin  on  your  home  plot.  If  you  have  but  little 
space,  plant  a  row  or  two  of  strawberries,  currants,  black- 
berries, or  gooseberries  along  the  back-yard  fence.  You  may 
have  enough  room  for  a  grapevine,  besides,  and  perhaps  a 
peach  tree  or  two.  Or  your  plot  may  be  large  ;  then  see  what 
you  can  do  with  apples,  pears,  or  cherries.  Mere,  of  course, 
you  must  wait  longer  before  getting  any  fruit.  Set  out  first- 
class  nursery  stock,  which  costs  so  little  more  that  it  is  effort 
wasted  to  begin  with  poor  trees.  Cultivate  the  young  trees 
well,  thinking  not  merely  of  the  few  small  trees  in  front  of 
you,  but  of  the  hundreds  of  heavily  laden  trees  you  may  have 
to  take  charge  of  later  on.  Should  your  efforts  succeed,  plan 
to  develop  your  business  on  a  larger  scale. 

I .  Conditions  for  sncccssful  fiitit  grozvirig.  First  of  all 
you  will  find  two  things  of  great  importance.  The  climate 
and  the  soil,  for  best  results,  must  be  suited  to  the  particular 
fruit.  "Apples  thrive  best,"  says  Professor  L.  R.  Taft,  "on 
a  strong,  sandy  loam  soil,  or  a  light  clay  loam.  Pears  require 
a  rather  stiff  soil,  and  do  best  in  a  moderately  heavy  clay 
loam.  Currants  delight  in  a  cool,  moist  soil,  and  cannot  be 
grown  successfully  in  the  Southern  States.  Oranges,  lemons, 
and  figs  are  adapted  to  many  sections  of  California,  Florida, 
and  Louisiana,  but  can  only  be  grown  under  glass  in  the  north- 
ern states."  Your  own  knowledge,  the  experience  of  your 
neighbors,  and  the  advice  of  the  state  experiment  stations  and 
the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  will  guide  you 
in  selecting  the  fruits  best  adapted  to  your  soil  and  climate. 


AGRICULTURE  59 

It  may  be  added  that  it  is  possible  to  modify  somewhat 
both  soil  and  climate.  A  hill,  a  north  or  south  slope,  a  table- 
land, or  a  valley  may  be  selected.  This  land  may  be  drained, 
surf  ace- worked  in  the  usual  way,  or  irrigated.  It  may  be 
stated  further  that  the  various  insect  enemies  about  which 
there  is  so  much  talk  need  not  unduly  alarm  you.  They  can 
all  be  conquered.  But  if  you  are  new  at  the  business  do  not 
invest  your  money  in  a  fruit  farm  before  giving  these  various 
matters  full  consideration. 

2.  Markethig  tJie  products.  While  you  are  studying  soil, 
climate,  what  particular  fruits  to  gTow,  and  .insect  enemies, 
you  must  also  think  of  another  very  important  matter  — 
the  market.  As  in  the  case  of  market  gardening,  it  is 
often  easier  to  produce  the  fruit  than  to  sell  it  satisfactorily. 
If  you  have  gone  into  the  raising  of  small  fruits,  such  as  rasp- 
berries, dewberries,  currants,  and  strawberries,  quickness  of 
transportation  and  sale  is  essential,  since  these  fruits  do  not 
stand  up  like  apples  or  oranges.  Truly  surprising  results  in 
marketing  are  accomplished  by  the  orange  and  grape  growers 
of  southern  California,  the  peach  growers  of  Colorado,  and  the 
apple  growers  of  Oregon  and  Washington.  The  bulk  of  their 
product  finds  a  market  in  the  Eastern  states,  three  thousand 
miles  away,  across  lofty  mountain  ranges  and  wide  deserts. 
It  has  been  only  by  careful  attention  to  packing,  the  develop- 
ment of  the  refrigerator  car,  and  the  guidance  of  cooperative 
fruit-growers'  associations  that  this  business,  depending  for 
its  customers  upon  the  opposite  side  of  the  continent,  could 
be  so  successfully  carried  on.  The  fact  that  these  details 
have  been  worked  out  and  a  business  of  millions  of  dollars 
developed  should  be  an  encouragement  to  all  fruit  growers. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Write,  asking  information  regarding  their  fruit  industry,  cost  of 
land,  returns  per  acre,  etc.  to  the  following  chambers  of  commerce : 
Grand  Junction.  Colorado :  Fresno,  California ;  Portland,  Oregon ; 
Middletown,  Connecticut :  Athens,  Georgia. 


6o  OCCUPATIONS 

2.  Why  has  the  cooperative  movement  been  developed  among  the 
fruit  growers  in  the  West  ?  What  are  its  advantages  ?  What  dangers 
threaten  it?  (See  Yearbook  for  1910,  pp.  391-406.) 

3.  What  fruits  grow  best  in  your  neighborhood .'' 

4.  Visit  some  successful  fruit  grower.  How  much  has  he  invested 
in  land.?  What  do  his  trees  cost  him?  On  what  crops  does  he  make 
most  profit?    What  marketing  arrangements  has  he? 

5.  Call  upon  your  local  fruit  dealer.  Where  does  he  secure  his  fruit? 
How  long  is  it  in  transit?    What  percentage  is  waste? 

6.  From  what  nurserymen  do  your  fruit  growers  buy  their  stock  ? 
Are  they  satisfied  with  it  ? 

7.  With  the  raising  of  what  other  products  may  fruit  growing  be 
profitably  combined  ? 


OTHER  AGRICULTURAL  OCCUPATIONS 

Nurseryman.  There  are  various  other  openings  in  agri- 
culture, some  one  of  which  may  prove  very  attractive  to  you. 
If  )-ou  find  fruit  growing  to  your  liking,  you  may  turn  your 
attention  to  producing  young  trees  for  other  farmers.  By 
adding  numerous  kinds  of  trees  and  shrubs,  you  may  be- 
come a  nurseryman.  If  you  should  desire  first  to  learn 
how  to  care  for  young  trees,  you  might  later  secure  a  posi- 
tion with  some  well-established  nursery  firm.  Or  you  may 
be  interested  in  the  selling  end  of  the  business  first,  and 
after  being  a  traveling  agent  for  a  time,  finally  take  a  part- 
nership in  the  firm. 

Seedsman.  Somewhat  similar  to  the  \ocation  of  nursery- 
man is  that  of  seedsman.  It  should  be  the  ambition  of 
every  farmer  to  grow  and  select  good  seed,  yet  no  general 
farmer  or  even  a  market  gardener  can  afford  to  spend  the 
time  and  effort  required  to  develop  new  varieties  of  plants 
and  produce  numerous  kinds  of  seeds.  This  is  the  work  of 
a  specialist,  the  seedsman  ;  and  certain  firms,  whose  names 
on  the  little  seed  envelopes  may  be  familiar  to  you,  have 
made  of  it  a  successful  business. 


AGRICULTURE  6i 

Landscape  gardener  ;  floriculturist.  Another  o])cning  — 
one  of  the  newer  professions  —  is  that  of  landscape  gar- 
dener. The  number  of  openings  available  at  present  are 
small  but  increasing,  and  the  salaries  are  good.  Again,  you 
may  love  flowers,  and  being  a  floriculturist  would  most  likely 
interest  you.  It  would  mean  taking  care  of  or  directing  the 
care  of  flowers  in  parks  and  private  grounds  or  in  greenhouses. 

Beekeeper.  But  little  capital  is  required  to  begin  as  a 
beekeeper.  Two  hives  of  bees  and  a  limited  equipment  will 
do  at  the  start,  and  if  handled  well  they  will  themselves  pay 
for  whatever  else  is  needed. 

Swine  raiser.  It  is  hard  to  imagine  any  successful  general 
farmer  who  is  not  also  something  of  a  swine  raiser.  Not 
much  land  is  required,  but  hogs  have  tremendous  appetites, 
and  to  solve  the  problem  of  food  supply  usually  calls  for 
large  corn  acreage. 

Other  positions.  If  you  are  well  trained  and  able  to  run 
a  farm  with  success,  positions  are  to  be  had  as  farm  man- 
ager, with  salary  ranging  from  $600  to  $2000  per  year. 
The  large  number  of  agricultural  high  schools  and  colleges, 
almost  three  thousand  of  them,  demand  trained  teachers. 
The  position  as  agricultural  teacher  pays  well  as  compared 
with  other  teaching  positions.  And  last  of  the  miscellaneous 
openings  in  agriculture  that  we  shall  mention  is  government 
work.  "  There  is  a  very  strong  and  steady  demand  for  young 
men  trained  in  the  principles  of  agriculture,"  Professor 
E.  C.  Bishop  of  the  Iowa  State  College  writes  us,  "  to  direct 
the  government  and  state  work  in  surveying,  forestry,  irriga- 
tion, drainage,  to  serve  as  county  advisers  in  the  United 
States  Farm  Management  Demonstration  Work,  and  to  take 
charge  of  other  lines  where  a  knowledge  of  the  principles  of 
agriculture  is  needed  to  direct  the  various  lines  of  agricultural 
practice  which  the  state  and  government  are  now  so  vig- 
orously and  effectively  pushing."  Here  is  a  line  of  work 
which,  moreover,  is  certain  to  grow  in  importance. 


62  OCCUPATIONS 

CONCLUDING  SUGGESTIONS  TO  PROSPECTIVE 
FARMERS 

It  takes  a  bigger  man  to-da\-  than  it  ever  did  before  to 
run  a  farm  successfully.  It  has  not  been  many  years  since 
a  pioneer  could  pick  out  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of 
the  most  fertile  land  in  the  Mississippi  valley  and  get  it  free 
from  the  government  for  the  asking.  A  man  of  very  ordinary 
push  and  brain  could  get  along  under  such  favorable  con- 
ditions. But  for  some  time  land  has  been  steadily  rising  in 
price,  until  in  Iowa,  for  instance.  Si  50  an  acre  is  frequently 
charged  for  an  improved  farm.  Besides  horses,  hogs,  cattle, 
and  chickens,  considerable  machinery  must  be  owned.  To 
manage  profitably  all  these  in  combination  demands  good 
hard  sense,  special  training,  and  executive  ability. 

On  the  other  hand,  only  about  half  the  farm  area  avail- 
able has  yet  been  improved.  Scientific  agriculture  is  making 
more  and  more  a  profit  on  cheap  poor  land  as  well  as  on 
high-priced  good  land.  Thousands  of  fine  openings  in  spe- 
cialized agriculture  await  the  man  who  is  alert  enough  to  see 
them.  In  fact,  the  young  man  whose  interest  is  in  agricul- 
ture need  not  be  discouraged,  but  should  rather  be  optimistic 
because  of  the  new  demands  under  which  success  comes 
to  him  who  is  industrious,  experienced,  and  scientifically 
trained. 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 
Books 

Ii.\n.i:v,  L.  II.  The  Country-Life  Movement  in  the  United  States.   The 

Macmillan  Company,  New  York.    51.25. 
Bailey,  L.  H.    The  Nursery-Book.    The  Macmillan  Company,  New 

York.    $1.00. 
BuKKETT,  C.  W.    The  Farmers' Veterinarian.    Orange  J udd  Company, 

New  York.    $1.50. 
BuKKETT,  Stevens,  and  IIii.i..    Agriculture  for  Beginners,    (iinn  and 

Company,  Boston.    90  cents. 


AC.RrcrT/I'URK  6^ 

CORBETT,  L.  C.    Garden  Farming.    Ginn  and  Company,  Boston. 

DeLan'Cev,  F.  W.  Down-to-date  Poultry  Knowledge.  Poultry  Fancier 
Publishing  Company,  Sellersville,  Pennsylvania.    50  cents. 

Henderson,  Peter.  Practical  Floriculture.  Orange  Judd  Company, 
New  York.    $1.50. 

HuEBNER,  Grover  G.  Agricultural  Commerce.  D.  Appleton  and 
Company.    $2.00. 

Hunt,  T.  F.  The  Young  Farmer.  Orange  Judd  Company,  New  York. 
$1.50. 

Newman,  T.  G.,  and  Daoant,  C.  P.  "  First  Lessons  in  Bee-Keeping." 
American  Bee  Journal,  Hamilton,  Illinois.    50  cents. 

Plumb,  C.  S.  Types  and  Breeds  of  Farm  Animals.  Ginn  and  Com- 
pany, Boston.    $2.00. 

Robinson,  John.    Our  Domestic  Birds,    (iinn  and  Company.  Boston. 

Tracy,  Sr.,  W.  W.    Vegetable  Seed  Growing  as  a  Business.    Yearbook 

for  1909,  pp.  273-284. 
Van  Norman,  H.  E.    First  Lessons  in  Dairying.    Orange  Judd  Com- 
pany, New  York.    50  cents. 
Waters,  H.  J.   E.ssentials  of  Agriculture,    (iinn  and  Company,  Boston. 

$1.25. 
Watson,  (j.  C.    Farm  Poultry.    The  Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

$1.50. 
Watts,  R.   L.    Vegetable  Gardening.     Orange  Judd  Company,  New 

York.    $1.75. 
Waugh,   F.   a.     Beginner's  Guide   to   Fruit   Growing.     Orange  Judd 

Company,  New  York.    75  cents. 
Waugh,  F.  A.    Landscape  Gardening.    Orange  Judd  Company,  New 

York.    75  cents. 
Wilkinson,  A.  E.    The  Apple.    Ginn  and  Company,  Boston.    ,$2.00. 
Wing,  H.  H.    Milk  and  its  Products.    The  Macmillan  Company,  New 

York.    $1.00. 

Periodicals 

Ame7'ican  Bee  Journal.    Monthly.    Hamilton,  Illinois.    $r. 00  per  year. 
Butter,   Cheese,  and  Egg  Journal.    A   weekly   magazine.    Milwaukee, 

Wisconsin.    $1.00  per  year. 
Fruit-Groiver  and  Fanner.    A  semimonthly  magazine.    Saint  Joseph, 

Missouri.    $1.00  per  year. 
Hoard^s  Dairyman.  A  weekly  journal  devoted  to  dairy  farming.    Fort 

Atkinson,  Wisconsin,    j?  i  .00  per  year. 


64  OCCUPA'riOXS 

Horiiculture.  A  weekly  journal  devoted  to  plant  culture,  landscape 
gardening,  and  kindred  interests,  ii  Hamilton  Place,  Boston.  $i.oo 
per  year. 

Market  Growers  Journal.  A  semimonthly  trade  paper  for  market 
gardeners.    Louisville,  Kentucky.    $  i  .00  per  year. 

Foicltry  Fancier.    Monthly.    Sellersville,  Pennsylvania.    $  i  .00  per  year. 

The  Country  Gentleman.  Weekly.  Curtis  Publishing  Company.  Phila- 
delphia.   $1.50  per  year. 

Wallace's  Farmer.  Weekly.  Wallace  Publishing  Company.  Des 
Moines.   Iowa.    $1.00  per  year. 

These  last  two  high-grade  periodicals  should  be  on  the  reading  table 
of  every  farmer.  In  addition  he  should  subscribe  to  the  leading  agri- 
cultural paper  published  in  his  state.  (lood  reading  matter  pays  for 
itself  over  and  over  again  both  in  dollars  and  in  enjoyment  of  farm  life. 


Rkpokts  and  Buli-etins 

Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Animal  Husbandry,  Department  of 
Agriculture,  Washington,  D.C.,  and  various  reports  of  your  state 
experiment  station  may  be  secured  free  of  charge. 

Bulletins  are  also  sent  out,  among  which  the  following  may  be 
mentioned :  Lane  and  Whitaker,  "  Score-Card  System  of  Dairy 
Inspection,"  Bureau  of  Animal  Husbandry,  Circular  IJQ:,  Dodge. 
''  Cropping  System  for  New  England  Dairy  Farms,"  Farmers' 
Bulletin  Jjy.    Send  for  list  of  bulletins  available. 

Bulletins  on  stock  raising  are  issued  by  the  above  bureau  and  by  state 
bureaus.    Write  for  lists  ;  some  are  very  helpful. 

Farmers'  bulletins,  of  which  a  large  list  is  available.  Write  the  agri- 
cultural department  for  this  list ;  check  off  those  desired  and  mail 
to  your  congressman,  who  will  see  that  you  receive  them  free  of 
charge.  Of  the  large  number  that  are  helpful,  space  will  permit  only 
two  to  be  mentioned  :  "  A  Successful  New  York  Farm,"  Farmers' 
Btilletin  4^4,  and  "  How  a  City  I'amily  managed  a  Farm,"  Farmers' 
Bulletin  4J2. 

Yearbook  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  the  annual  report  referred 
to  in  later  pages  as  the  Yearbook.  Sent  free ;  write  your  congress- 
man for  a  copy.  Young  men  planning  to  become  farmers  should  by 
all  means  secure  a  copy  of  this  book  each  year.  The  following  arti- 
cles may  be  consulted  in  connection  with  the  foregoing  discussion  : 


AGRICL'LriJRE  65 

"Farm  Labor"  (1910),  pp.  189-200;  "Farm  Labor ""  (1911;. 
pp.  269-284;  "Agricultural  Education"  (1905),  pp.  193-218; 
"Agricultural  Education"  (1910),  pp.  177-188;  "Agricultural  Edu- 
cation" (1912),  pp.  471-482;  "Demonstration  Work"  (1909), 
pp.  153-160;  "Marketing"  (1909),  pp.  161-172;  "Farming  for 
City  Men"  (1909),  pp.  239-248. 

Articles 

Andrews,  F.  "  Reduction  of  Waste  in  Marketing."  Yearbook  of  191  i, 
pp.  165-176. 

"  A  Home  Vegetable  Garden,"  I'anncrs'  BiiUetin  255.  See  also  Bulle- 
tins 62,  220,  4JJ. 

BoNSTEEL,  J.  A.  "  Truck  Soils  of  the  Atlantic  Coast  Region."  Year- 
book for  191  2,  pp.  417-432. 

CoRBETT,  L.  C.  "  A  Successful  Method  of  Marketing  Yegetable 
Products."    Yearbook  for  191  2,  pp.  353-362. 

Dexter,  W.  H.  and  Others.  "  Opportunities  for  Dairying."  Yearbook 
for  1906,  pp.  405-428.  (Discusses  the  various  sections  of  the  United 
States.) 

Fanners^  Bulletins  ij^,  ig8,  2j8,  4QI. 

Jones,  R.  G.  "  Opportunities  in  the  Dairy  Business."  Butter,  Cheese, 
and  Egg  Journal,  May  21,  191 2. 

Stubenrauch,  a.  V.  "  Handling  of  Deciduous  Fruits  on  the  Pacific 
Coast."    Yearbook  for  1909,  pp.  365-374. 


CHAPTER  V 

COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS 

Every  man  who  studies  along  the  fine  and  broad  lines  of  commercial 
enterprise  to-day  must  recognize  the  fact  that  a  business  career  is  a  pro- 
fession as  noble  in  its  way  as  that  of  the  lawyer  or  the  engineer.  Men  and 
women  must  be  trained  for  it. — John  Wanamaker 

The  beginning  and  growth  of  commerce.  (3ur  vast  com- 
mercial organization,  vvitli  its  retail  stores,  wholesale  houses, 
stock  exchanges,  and  clearing  houses,  may  be  traced  in  its 
rude  beginnings  to  the  makeshifts  adopted  for  trading  by 
such  miserable  savages  as  the  Australian  natives.  When 
one  native  wishes  to  trade  with  another,  he  leaves  his  com- 
modity on  a  certain  cleared  space  and  hides  behind  a  bush. 
The  other  native  then  examines  the  article,  and  after  plac- 
ing what  he  considers  an  equivalent  commodity  beside  that 
of  the  first,  he  also  hides  behind  a  bush.  The  first  native 
then  advances  and  examines  the  article  left.  If  satisfied, 
he  carries  it  away  and  the  trade  is  completed.  If  not  sat- 
isfied, he  carries  away  his  own  article  and  the  trade  is 
thus  declared  off.  Crude  as  such  a  plan  is,  it  indicates 
some  of  the  primary  ideas  upon  which  all  commerce  rests, 
namely  : 

I.  The  desire  f 07'  what  others  fossess.  The  Australian, 
though  a  savage,  possesses  what  is  developed  very  nearly 
into  a  passion  with  civilized  man,  the  desire  for  more  things. 
It  is  because  mankind  is  not  satisfied  with  the  products 
at  hand,  but,  even  to  supply  his  breakfast  table,  wishes  to 
draw  upon  the  whole  world,  that  commerce  throws  out  its 
lines  to  di.stant  Java  and  Japan  and  also  orders  European 
products  by   the   millions.     Progress   is  accompanied    by  a 

66 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  67 

multiplication   of    desires,   and   it   is   the   business  of    com- 
merce to  satisfy  them. 

2.  The  sense  of  relative  values.  The  Australian  native, 
with  the  two  articles  on  the  ground  in  front  of  him,  ponders 
from  which  he  can  get  the  greater  satisfaction.  This  is  the 
same  mental  process  which  the  boy  shows  when  with  ten 
cents  in  his  pocket,  and  the  question  of  ice  cream  or  fire- 
crackers before  him,  he  decides  to  eat  rather  than  to  shoot. 
We  also  find  much  the  same  problem  before  his  father  when 
he  decides  upon  an  automobile  instead  of  a  yacht,  or  before 
the  broker  who  refuses  100  shares  U.S.  Steel  at  97  but 
buys  60  shares  Union  Pacific  at  135.  Shrewd  business  men 
have  a  keen  sense  of  relative  values  ;  their  success  depends 
largely  upon  it. 

3.  The  special  mechanism  of  trade  activities.  The  paths 
through  the  forest,  the  cleared  space,  and  the  bushes  were 
the  machinery  by  means  of  which  the  savages  traded.  The 
paths  have  now  become  wagon  roads,  splendid  railroads, 
and  steamship  lines,  such  speedy  and  cheap  "  paths  "  that 
bananas  may  be  brought  from  Cuba  to  the  village  store  in 
Oregon,  and  the  nutmegs  of  Borneo  to  the  frontier  post  in 
the  Klondike.  The  cleared  space  and  bushes  have  given 
way  to  stores  and  counters  and  clerks,  coins  and  checks  and 
banks,  telephone  and  telegraph  and  letter,  retail  store  and 
wholesale  house  and  stock  exchange.  Just  as  a  boy  needs 
a  knife  to  cut  a  stick,  so  commercial  men  need  special 
machinery  to  transact  business. 

4.  The  protection  of  trade.  When  the  products  of  the 
merchant  are  besieged  by  robbers  on  the  land  or  pirates  on 
the  sea,  he  must  sell  these  products  at  exorbitant  prices  to 
safeguard  his  risk,  or  otherwise  quit  business.  The  Austra- 
lians planned  that  the  clearing  should  be  a  place  of  peace, 
that  by  the  traders'  hiding  behind  bushes  the  chances  for 
hot  words  and  personal  combat  would  be  lessened,  and  that 
no  trade  should  be  binding  unless  both  parties  had  expressed 


68  OCCrPATIOXS 

themselves  as  satisfied  b\-  offering,  taking,  or  leaving  the 
proffered  artieles.  Business  men  have  always  opposed  war, 
—  except  a  few  armor-plate  and  gun  makers,  like  the 
Krupps,  —  and  their  conviction  that  it  is  really  at  bottom 
"  the  great  illusion  "  is  some  day  likely  to  overthrow  the 
war  gods  permanently.  Modern  nations  throw  protection 
over  their  citizen-traders,  even  though  they  go  to  the  ends 
of  the  earth.  < 

Perfection  of  modern-trade  conditions.  In  each  of  these 
four  points,  in  which  the  savage  paved  tJiC  way,  th"e  modern 
business  man  has  developed  the  process  until  it  now  well- 
nigh  reaches  perfection.  Modern  comQierce  has  become  : 
(I)  Certain.  The  present-day  merchant.no  longer  takes  a 
wild  leap  in  the  dark.  He  knows  prices  and  can  depend 
upon  his  orders  being  filled,  delivered,  and  sold,  all  in  a  way 
no  merchant  has  been  able  to  do  bdfore.  (2)  Regular.  In 
ancient  India  and  China  the  grain  markets  might  be  glutted 
in  one  province  while  the  people  in  an.,  adjacent  province 
were  starving.  During  the  pioneer  days  in  the  West,  wheat 
at  han'est  time  was  almost  worthless,  while  its  price  mounted 
skyward  in  late  winter.  But  modern  commerce  can  take  ac- 
count of  months  rather  than  days,  and  in  this  way  suppress 
considerably  the  fluctuations  and  secure  regularity.  (3)  Eco- 
nomical. Little  savings  are  beginning  to  count.  When  an 
American  salesman  cannot  undersell  a  German  salesman  in 
the  office  of  a  Buenos  Aires  merchant,  nor  perhaps  win 
even  by  a  small  margin  a  Johannesburg  contract  from  a 
l^ritish  salesman,  the  duty  is  forced  upon  the  home  office 
of  discharging  the  slow-moving  office  boy  and  the  wasteful 
shipping  clerk.  (4)  Sensitive.  This  international  competi- 
tion keeps  the  business  kings  of  the  world  on  the  firing  line, 
ever  alert.  A  change  of  a  quarter  of  a  cent  in  the  price  of 
cotton  closes  a  cotton  mill  in  Manchester  and  opens  one  in 
Atlanta.  With  the  advent  of  our  beef  scandal,  down  went 
the  profits  of  the  Chicago  packers  and  upward  soared  the 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  69 

daily  output  of  the  German  slaughterhouses.  When  the  com- 
mercial machine  becomes  so  enormous,  yet  so  sensitive,  more 
skill  is  required  of  the  directing  hand  and  more  efficiency 
from  the  rank  and  file. 

In  this  contest  for  world  markets,  no  people  have  entered 
with  more  enthusiasm  than  have  the  Americans.  The  Yankee 
is  a  shrewd  but  aggressive  merchant,  as  others  have  learned 
to  their  cost.  But  he  has  also  93,000,000  of  home  buyers, 
a  vast  multitude  whose  high  standard  of  living  provides  a 
splendid  market.  Commercial  occupations  consequently  have 
come  to  number  their  adherents  by  the  millions;  9.91  per 
cent  of  the  American  nation  is  engaged  in  commercial  pur- 
suits, a  proportion  exceeding  all  other  occupations  save 
agriculture.  Almost  half  of  our  people  live  in  cities  and 
towns  of  over  two  thousand  five  hundred  inhabitants,  and 
the  relative  number  is  increasing. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Tell  how  our  present  system  of  money  was  developed.  (See 
encyclopedia  or  history  of  commerce.) 

2.  What  can  you  tell  of  trade  among  the  Indians?  What  did  they 
use  for  money  ? 

3.  What  rank  does  the  United  States  hold  among  the  commercial 
nations  ? 

4.  What  are  our  leading  exports .-*    imports? 

5.  Is  commerce   in   your   community  more  or  less  important  than 

agriculture  ? 

Social  standing,  i ,  Former  position  of  nierchauts.  Per- 
haps you  think  that  nothing  need  be  said  about  the  social 
standing  of  the  business  man,  since  everybody  knows  that 
he  is  looked  up  to  in  his  community.  But  he  has  not  ahvays 
been  so  respected.  The  early  merchants  were  a  despised  lot. 
The  democratic  Spartans  believed  that  all  citizens  were 
equal  —  but  the  merchant  perioeci  were  not  citizens  and 


70  OCCUPATIONS 

had  no  political  rights.  The  Athenians  thought  tliat  such 
material  matters  as  trading  were  fit  for  slaves.  Their  minds 
were  turned  toward  art  and  philosophy.  Socrates  taught  that 
to  have  few  wants  was  godlike ;  Plato  would  have  no  place 
in  his  ideal  state  for  money,  "  nor  much  of  the  vulgar  sort  of 
trade,"  he  says,  "which  is  carried  on  by  lending  money." 
The  opinion  of  Cicero  indicates  the  Roman  point  of  view. 
"  Those  who  buy  to  sell  again  as  soon  as  they  can,  are,"  he 
concludes,  "to  be  accounted  as  vulgar  ;  for  they  can  make  no 
profit  except  by  a  certain  amount  of  falsehood,  and  nothing 
is  meaner  than  falsehood."  According  to  the  early-church 
fathers  in  the  Middle  Ages,  "  Agriculture  was  praised ; 
manufacture  did  not  displease  God  ;  but  trade  could  not  be 
pleasing  to  the  Deity."  Even  to-day  there  are  some  of  the 
narrow-minded  who  sniff  at  "crude  materialism,"  and  think 
to  prove  their  superiority  by  disclaiming  a  knowledge  of  all 
things  practical. 

2.  The  mercJiaiif s  services  to  society.  The  merchant, 
however,  is  a  real  producer,  just  as  truly  as  anyone  else. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  "producing"  in  the  sense  of 
creating  out  of  nothing  a  new  product.  Tlic  farmer  causes 
plows,  seeders,  and  binders  to  work  —  and  produces  wheat. 
The  miller  causes  trains,  elevators,  and  rollers  to  work  — 
and  produces  flour.  The  merchant  causes  telephone,  stock 
clerk,  salesman,  and  delivery  boy  to  work  —  and  produces 
flour  ///  Mj-s.  Brown's  kitcJieii  when  she  wants  to  use  it  for 
baking  Friday  morni)ig.  Each  produces  utility  ;  that  is,  some- 
thing which  people  want  to^  use.  Wheat  is  wanted;  the 
farmer  produces  the  desired  result ;  his  labor  brings  about 
what  may  be  termed  elevientaiy  utility.  Elour,  prepared 
wheat,  is  wanted  ;  the  miller  produces  the  desired  result ; 
his  labor  brings  about  form  utility.  Mrs.  Brown  wants 
flour  in  her  kitchen  when  she  needs  it  for  baking ;  the  mer- 
chant produces  the  desired  result ;  his  labors  result  in  place 
and  time  utility.    Such  utilities  are  certainly  important  and 


COMMERCIAL  OCCCPATIONS  71 

necessar}'  fur  the  well-being  of  all  of  us,  and  the  merchant  in 
supplying  them  is  just  as  truly  a  producer  as  is  the  farmer 
or  the  miner.  He  is  entitled  to  full  respect  and  high  social 
standing  if  he  does  his  work  well. 

A  certain  eminent  man  of  affairs  on  being  asked,  "  What 
does  business  mean  to  you  ?  "  gave  a  fair  statement  of  the 
facts  of  any  honorable  business,  when  he  replied:  "It  has 
meant  an  effort  to  prove  as  far  as  possible  worthy  in  a  field 
which  has  been  one  of  the  major  powers  in  the  development 
of  the  life  of  the  world.  It  has  meant  satisfaction  attained 
by  contributing  to  the  upbuilding  and  prosperity  of  my  com- 
munity. For  the  real  business  man  is  a  man  of  constant 
service  to  his  community.  He  is  not  a  speculator,  operating 
on  capital  consisting  chiefly  of  '  nerve '  and  paper-built 
schemes,  who  tries  to  make  something  out  of  nothing  and 
that  at  the  expense  of  those  upon  whom  he  can  impose.  He 
discovers  and  supplies  a  legitimate  demand.  He  meets  a  real 
need  with  the  substantial  thing  that  will  satisfy  that  necessity. 
Such  a  man  cannot,  by  the  very  nature  of  affairs,  become  a 
mere  money-grabber.  He  keeps  an  eye  on  the  making  of 
profits  in  business,  else  he  must  show  his  lack  of  good  busi- 
ness capacity — but  inevitably  he  works  for  the  welfare  of  the 
community  in  which  he  moves." 

3.  TJie  present  social  position  of  mcrcJiants.  There  are 
many  thousands  of  such  men  who  serve  society  well.  Their 
opinions  are  eagerly  sought  in  all  important  matters,  their 
names  and  pictures  are  seen  in  the  papers,  they  hold  posi- 
tions of  honor  in  public  enterprises,  and  they  are  approved 
among  men.  While  they  often  reap  great  rewards  in  money, 
society  can  well  afford  to  see  them  become  rich.  For  every 
dollar  that  they  receive  personally,  many  more  go  in  a  busi- 
ness way  to  all  with  whom  they  deal  —  their  workers,  those 
from  whom  they  buy,  and  those  to  whom  they  sell.  These 
men  are  thus  public  benefactors  and  accordingly  occupy  a 
position  of  high  social  standing.     If  you  enter  commercial 


72  OCCUPATIONS 

life  and  want  to  be  respected  by  men,  serve  them  well  and 
thus  build  a  career  of  deserved  success. 

You  must  not  conclude  from  this,  however,  that  just  as 
soon  as  you  take  the  president's  dictation  faultlessly,  if  a 
stenographer  in  a  wholesale  house,  you  become  as  prominent 
as  he.  If  social  esteem  depends  largely  upon  doing  the  work 
of  the  world  well,  there  is  surely  such  a  thing  as  the  relative 
importance  of  workers,  since  the  efforts  of  one  man  are 
often  of  more  importance  than  the  efforts  of  other  men. 
Highest  honor  in  the  business  world  is  usually  given  to 
those  who  have  been  years  in  the  service,  and  who  continue 
to  prove  their  ability  to  wear  the  spurs  they  have  long  since 
won.  If  you  have  the  ability,  the  perseverance,  and  the 
character  required  of  the  successful  business  man,  you  will 
receive  social  esteem  from  an  ever-widening  circle  as  you 
go  higher. 

WHICH   BUSINESS   SHALL  YOU   CHOOSE? 

The  young  man  who  surveys  the  commercial  world  has 
spread  before  him  a  great  variety  of  business  activities.  It 
would  require  volumes  to  describe  all  of  these  even  briefly 
—  and  some  of  these  volumes  have  already  been  written. 
But  in  one  book  we  can  treat  only  briefly  the  most  important 
of  these  kinds  of  business  and  leave  with  you  a  somewhat 
extensive  list  of  references.  On  other  pages  the  subject  of 
positions  will  be  discussed,  but  before  you  consider  which 
position  to  choose  think  over  which  business  you  prefer. 
Study  with  care  the  exercises  bearing  upon  this.  When  you 
discover  that  a  certain  business  appeals  strongly  to  you  as  a 
life-career,  read  some  of  the  books  treating  it  which  are 
listed  in  the  references.  Subscribe  now,  before  you  graduate, 
for  one  of  the  periodicals  devoted  to  this  calling  and  read 
it  regularly,  so  that  much  \aluablc  time  for  preparation  may 
be  utilized. 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  73 

Merchandizing.  The  pioneer  merchant  was  the  keeper  of 
the  old-fashioned,  crossroads  general  store.  He  kept  a  little 
of  everything,  from  the  cinnamon  bark  in  the  tin  carton  to  the 
manila  rope  he  uncoiled  from  the  cellar.  But  the  farmers' 
wants  outran  his  limited  stock,  so  that  now  when  they  wish  to 
buy  everything  of  one  concern  they  send  an  order  to  some 
mail-order  house.  It  is  the  proud  boast  of  some  of  these 
houses  that  they  sell  everything  from  a  needle  to  a  threshing 
machine.  If  the  crossroads  has  become  a  city,  those  who 
still  prefer  to  buy  all  their  goods  in  one  place  patronize  the 
department  store.  Here  under  one  roof,  with  acres  of  floor 
space,  miles  of  aisles,  and  thousands  of  clerks,  is  transacted 
such  a  mammoth  business  that  compared  to  it  the  wealth 
of  Croesus  is  a  mere  bagatelle. 

But  the  crossroads  store  has  also  split  up  into  stores 
carrying  different  lines.  And  of  these  the  number  is  legion. 
There  are  separate  stores  for  each  of  the  following  com- 
modities :  hardware,  implements,  china  and  glassware,  dry 
goods,  clothing,  furnishings,  boots  and  shoes,  fruit,  confec- 
tionery, meat  and  vegetables,  grain,  flour,  and  feed,  lumber 
and  coal,  watches,  clocks,  jewelry  and  optical  goods,  drugs, 
stationery,  and  the  like.  Moreover,  the  stores  just  mentioned 
embrace  but  the  one  phase  of  merchandizing,  retailing. 
There  are  likewise  numerous  openings  in  wholesaling,  not 
so  well  known,  perhaps,  but  substantial  callings  nevertheless. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Draw  up  a  list  of  the  various  commodities,  such  as  dry  goods, 
hardware,  drugs,  etc.,  which  are  sold  in  separate  stores  in  your  town, 
and  place  under  each  commodity  the  names  of  the  firms  who  deal  in  it. 

2.  Talk  with  some  leading  merchant  who  handles  one  of  these  com- 
modities. Ask  him  how  much  capital  is  needed  to  stock  such  a  business ; 
what  the  main  expense  items  are ;  the  particular  advantages  ;  the  disad- 
vantages ;    his  opinion  of  this  business  as  an  opening  for  a  young  man. 

3.  Which  particular  line  of  merchandizing  in  the  town  offers  you  the 
best  opening.?    Give  reasons  for  your  answer. 


74  OCCUPA1'IO\S 

Printing  and  publishing.  Must  of  the  employees  of  print- 
ing and  publishing-  houses  are  hand  workers  and  hence  come 
properly  under  the  manufacturing  classification.  Still  there 
remain  almost  100,000  others,  ol^cials  and  clerks,  whose 
work  and  total  annual  salaries  of  $100,000,000  are  essen- 
tially commercial.  The  publishing  industry  of  any  particular 
firm  may  be  directed  toward  (i)  general  or  miscellaneous 
book  publishing ;  (2)  books  sold  by  subscription  methods  ; 
(3)  educational  or  textbook  publishing ;  (4)  newspapers  or 
magazines. 

The  outlook  for  a  \oung  man  entering  this  business  is 
very  good.  The  value  of  the  product  increased  34  per  cent 
from  I904*to  ipb9  and  the  number  of  salaried  of^cials  and 
clerks  almost  doubled.  "If  one  looks  over  the  field,"  says 
a  leading  American  publisher,  F.  N,  Doubleday  of  Double- 
day,  Page  &  Company,  "one  sees  opportunities  in  abun- 
dance. One  comes  upon  a  great  many  men  who  have  ideas, 
but  the  men  who  have  the  ideas  and  can  work  them  out 
are  many  da}^s'  journey  aj^art.  In  the  next  decade  the  sale 
of  books  will  certainly  be  vastly  increased,  and  these  are 
the  men  who  will  do  it." 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  publisher  and  a  bookseller?  be- 
tween a  publisher  and  a  printer?    May  one  company  combine  all  three? 

2.  Name  several  of  the  leading  publishers. 

3.  Is  the  publishing  business  increasing  or  decreasing  in  importance  ? 

4.  What  opportunities  are  there  in  your  community  for  entering  this 
business? 

Real  estate.  It  may  seem  a  simple  matter  to  buy,  sell,  or 
lease  farm  lands,  city  lots,  dwellings,  and  other  buildings. 
But  to  carry  on  such  transactions  successfully  many  intricate 
questions  must  be  solved,  which  in  turn  require  specialized 
ability.    This  the  real-estate  man  attempts  to  supply.    He 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  75 

studies  careful!)-  how  to  value  the  different  kinds  of  prop- 
erty in  which  he  deals,  informs  himself  concerning  contracts, 
leases,  mortgages,  taxes,  and  titles,  and  learns  how  to  work 
to  advantage  with  the  owner,  the  prospective  purchaser,  the 
auctioneer,  the  surveyor,  and  the  architect. 

In  practice  the  real-estate  man  devotes  himself  to  one 
of  several  possible  kinds  of  work.  He  may  specialize  in 
office  or  store  buildings,  and  how  to  manage  them  at  a 
profit.  In  large  cities  especially  such  work  claims  the  at- 
tention of  many  real-estate  men.  Instead  of  office  or  store 
buildings,  he  may  deal  in  dwellings,  building,  buying,  or 
selling  them,  or  serving  as  a  renting  agent. 

Other  operators  devote  themselves  to  developing  new 
tracts  of  land.  They  may  buy  a  tract  near  some  city,  lay  it 
out  in  blocks  and  lots,  build  sidewalks  and  at  times  houses 
as  well,  and  then,  by  inducing  people  to  move  in,  start  a 
new  suburb  whose  improved  lots  sell  considerably  higher 
than  did  the  rough  tract  out  of  which  they  were  formed. 
Of  course  such  an  operator  must  be  far-sighted  and  shrewd 
in  estimating  which  way  the  city's  population  is  to  move, 
or  his  proposed  new  suburb  may  remain  only  a  dream. 
However,  population  and  industry  are  constantly  shifting 
in  their  location,  and  the  real-estate  man  who  is  alert 
enough  to  buy  and  sell  at  the  right  time  is  assured  of 
profitable  returns. 

Since  people  attach  great  importance  to  their  farms, 
houses,  offices,  and  other  buildings,  the  man  who  aids 
them  in  handling  all  such  property  with  increased  satis- 
faction to  themselves  performs  a  service  well  worth  while. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Is  there  much  buying  and  selling  of  real  estate  in  j^our  town .''  Is 
property  rising  in  value?    Are  new  building  tracts  being  developed? 

2.  How  many  real-estate  firms  are  there  in  your  town?  In  what 
branch  of  real  estate  does  each  specialize? 


^6  OCCUPATIONS 

3.  Call  upon  some  real-estate  man.  In  what  ways  does  he  make  his 
money  from  real  estate?  Does  he  combine  any  other  business  with 
real  estate  ? 

4.  What  successful  methods  have  real-estate  agents  followed  in  their 
business?  Which  of  these  would  not  be  advisable  for  you  to  attempt  in 
this  community  ?    Which  would  likely  prove  successful  ? 

Insurance.  One  realizes,  if  he  thinks  over  the  matter  for 
a  moment,  that  hfe  is  full  of  uncertainties.  Train  wrecks, 
sunken  ships,  fires,  tornadoes,  sickness  —  these  are  some  of 
the  things  that  prevent  us  from  being  sure  we  can  do  the 
thing  we  plan  to  do.  It  is  considei"ed  necessary  in  business, 
however,  that  one  have  this  sureness.  For  this  purpose  in- 
surance was  developed.  In  the  seventeenth  century  certain 
merchants  who  frequented  the  coffeehouse  kept  by  Lloyd 
agreed  among  themselves  that  if  a  member  should  lose  his 
cargo  in  the  foreign  trade,  his  loss  would  be  made  good  by 
the  group.  In  this  way,  each  merchant  could  trade  with 
assurance  because  the  risk  of  loss  would  be  borne  by  many, 
not  by  himself  alone. 

This  principle  upon  wliich  insurance  is  founded  —  mak- 
ing the  individual  secure  because  his  risk  is  shared  by  many 
—  has  been  applied  to  an  ever-increasing  variety  of  events. 
Accordingly  we  have  such  different  kinds  of  insurance  as 
fire,  marine,  tornado,  steam  boiler,  plate  glass,  accident,  sick- 
ness, and  life.  Insurance  is  coming  to  be  regarded  as  a 
commodity,  in  much  the  same  light  as  a  suit  of  clothes,  a 
house  and  lot,  or  an  auto  truck. 

In  the  home  offices  of  the  insurance  companies,  positions 
are  available  for  actuaries,  bookkeepers,  file  clerks,  stenog- 
raphers ;  in  fact,  one  may  say  the  beginner  will  find  here 
a  variety  of  clerical  positions.  However,  insurance  compa- 
nies are  particularly  interested  in  young  men  who  show 
promise  of  ability  as  salesmen.  They  train  these  young 
men  at  their  home  offices  and  then  assign  them  to  some 
branch     office    where    they    are    responsible    to    the    local 


COMMERCIAL  OCCl'PA TIONS  JJ 

manager.  Insurance  is  by  no  means  easy  to  sell,  but  those 
who  show  ability  in  this  respect  earn  good  commissions 
and  may  in  time  become  branch  managers. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Do  insurance  men  secure  business  by  opening  an  office  or  by 
field  work.'' 

2.  Call  upon  some  successful  insurance  man.  Ask  him  how  he  locates 
his  prospects  ;    how  he  makes  a  sale. 

3.  What  are  some  of  the  advantages  of  this  business.'*  the  dis- 
advantages ? 

4.  Has  some  insurance  company  its  home  office  in  or  near  your 
city.''    What  opportunities  does  it  offer  for  employment.'' 

Banking.  In  buying  and  selling  we  require  some  sort  of 
standard  with  which  to  measure  the  value  of  different  arti- 
cles. Such  a  standard  is  called  money.  It  is  minted  or 
printed  by  the  government  in  vast  amounts,  and  for  the  con- 
venience of  its  owners  is  received  from  them  or  paid  out  to 
them  by  the  bank  to  whom  they  have  intrusted  it.  Strange 
as  it  may  seem,  however,  currency  is  too  limited  in  amount 
and  too  inconvenient  to  serve  the  needs  of  business  ;  it  must 
be  supplemented  by  credit.  So,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  to-day 
for  every  four  dollars  currency  that  passes  from  hand  to 
hand  in  trading,  ninety-six  dollars  credit  is  employed.  In- 
consequence,  the  bank's  function  of  dealing  in  currency  is 
much  less  important  than  its  function  of  dealing  in  credit. 
It  offers  a  business  man  its  well-known  credit  in  exchange 
for  his  less-known  credit,  and  charges  him  interest  for  the 
accommodation.  Such  is  the  work  of  the  commercial  bank, 
the  most  numerous  of  all  banking  institutions. 

In  small  towns  the  banker  also  advises  with  customers 
concerning  wills,  mortgages,  savings,  and  investments.  In 
cities,  however,  specialization  takes  place,  resulting  in  tlie 
development  of  trust  companies,   savings   banks,  and  bond 


78  OCCUPATIONS 

and  brokerage  houses.  As  a  consequence,  there  is  a  variety 
of  work  available  in  financial  institutions,  the  duties  of  the 
small-town  cashier,  for  example,  being  quite  different  from 
those  of  the  city  bond  salesman. 

The  departments  of  a  bank  are  as  follows :  ( i )  Receiving. 
The  receiving  teller  accepts  deposits  from  customers  and 
after  checking  up  the  amounts  turns  them  over  to  the  ne.xt 
department  for  recording.  (2)  Bookkeeping.  The  book- 
keeper makes  careful  record  of  all  transactions,  since  fraud 
and  dishonesty  must  be  guarded  against  and  every  account 
be  kept  in  an  accurate  and  systematic  manner.  (3)  Loans 
and  discounts.  The  bank  makes  its  profits  by  loaning  its 
funds  at  interest,  but  needless  to  say  its  officers  must  exer- 
cise care  concerning  the  person  who  would  borrow  or  whose 
notes  are  offered  them  for  purchase.  (4)  Paying.  The  pay- 
ing teller  examines  the  commercial  paper  presented  him  and 
if  satisfied  as  to  its  genuineness,  he  passes  out  the  bank's 
funds  in  payment.  Other  departments  are  collecting,  corre- 
spondence, exchange,  and  advertising.  Employment  with 
these  financial  companies  may  impress  the  average  young 
man  as  somewhat  conservative,  with  advancement  rather 
slow.  In  general,  banking  is  a  substantial  business  with 
good  prospects  for  the  future. 

EXERCISES 

1.  On  what  does  a  bank  make  its  profits? 

2.  What  financial  institutions  has  your  town  ? 

3.  If  any  of  your  friends  are  employed  in  these  institutions,  ask  them 
to  tell  you  about  their  work. 

4.  Interview  some  leading  banker.  Ask  Iiim  how  he  became  a 
banker :  what  positions  there  are  in  banks  for  young  men :  what 
qualifications  he  considers  essential:  if  he  recommends  banking  as  a 
good  vocation  for  a  young  man  to  enter. 


COMMERCIAL  OCCll'ATIONS  79 

GENERAL  SUGGESTIONS   FOR  CHOOSL\G  YOUR 
PARTICULAR  BUSINESS 

Selection  according  to  qualifications,  desires,  and  capital. 

While  choosing  your  particular  business  the  following  three 
suggestions  may  prove  of  value  to  you  :  (i)  ^'ou  may  select 
that  business  in  which  your  natural  ability  and  qualifications 
make  the  possibility  of  success  greatest.  If  your  manners  are 
good  and  your  temper  is  genial,  such  a  position  as  "  trouble 
mender  "  in  a  retail  market  might  be  secured  rather  than 
work  on  the  adding  machine  in  a  bank.  (2)  You  may 
enter  work  which,  to  you  at  least,  is  interesting.  If  you  like 
to  deal  with  big,  bulky  packages  and  to  see  piled  up  all 
around  you  the  results  of  your  activity,  you  might  become 
shipping  clerk  for  a  wholesale  grocery  house.  (3)  Should 
you  desire  to  go  into  business  for  yourself,  you  can  choose 
from  the  large  number  of  available  business  enterprizes  the 
one  for  which  }-our  capital  is  sufficient. 

Consideration  of  possibilities  of  success  and  failure.  Be- 
fore engaging  in  business  for  yourself,  however,  give  careful 
thought  to  the  probabilities  of  your  succeeding  or  failing  in 
it.  "  Friction,  and  with  it  some  loss  of  power  or  energy,  is 
inseparable  from  the  conduct  of  all  business,  as  indeed  of  all 
other  forms  of  human  endeavor,"  sa}s  Bradstreet's  Mercan- 
tile Agency,  "  and  it  is  no  surprise  to  find  that  in  a  country 
such  as  the  L^nited  States,  where  many  thousand  new  enter- 
prises are  added  each  year  to  the  business  community,  there 
should  be  thousands  of  failures.  This  business  community, 
totaling  in  the  year  19 14  some  1,749,000,  naturally  includes 
many  poorly  provided,  in  different  ways,  to  embark  upon 
business  life."  The  number  of  failures  among  commercial 
concerns  in  19 14  is  given  as  16,769.  Bradstreet's  draw  up 
the  following  table  in  which  the  causes  of  failure  should 
have  your  closest  attention  : 


8o 


OCCUPATIONS 


WHY   MEN  FAILED  IN  1914 


Cause  of  Failure 

Number 

Cause  of  Failure 

Number 

Lack  of  capital 

Incompetence 

Specific  conditions    .     .    . 

Fraud    

Inexperience 

Competition 

4928 
4705 
-753 

1593 
941 

494 

Unwise  credits    .... 

Neglect 

Failure  of  others    .     .     . 
Extravagance      .... 

Speculation 

Total 

411 
371 
304 
14S 
121 
16,769 

Run  carefully  down  this  list  point  by  point,  vvitli  }our  own 
prospective  business  in  mind,  and  ask  }()urself  such  definite 
questions  as  these  :  Do  I  know  enouj^h  to  run  this  busi- 
ness ?  Have  I  enough  money  to  make  it  jDrospcr  ?  Have  I 
the  interest  in  it  and  the  push  in  me  sufficient  to  escape 
the  dangers  of  neglect  and  competition  ?  In  short,  have  I 
all  the  necessary  qualifications  to  make  a  success  of  this 
business  even  under  adverse  circumstances  ?  After  a  fair 
and  candid  consideration  of  these  questions  you  will  be  in 
a  better  position  to  decide  whether  to  start  in  business  for 
yourself,  or  to  work,  at  least  a  while,  for  some  firm  already 
established. 

Consideration  of  the  effect  of  modern  combination  and 
competition.  The  general  tendency  is  toward  combination  ; 
that  is,  the  control  of  a  greater  share  of  the  market  by  fewer 
but  larger  concerns.  Unless  you  have  a  unique  specialty  or 
some  other  particular  advantage,  or  you  wish  to  remain  in  a 
small  town,  the  chances  are  that  the  competition  of  the 
larger  establishments  will  be  a  serious  disadvantage  to  you. 
R.  II.  Macy  and  Company  in  their  department  store  at 
l^roadwax'  and  Thirtx  louilli  .Street,  New  \'ork,  employ 
some  5000  people.  ( )ne  block  away  is  the  mammoth  store 
of  Cjimbel  Brothers,  with  .Saks  and  Companv  between.  At 
bjghth  .Street  and  Broadway  is  John  W'anamakcr's,  with 
o\er   5000   emplo)'ees,   not   to  mention   W'anamaker's  other 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  8 1 

great  store  in  Philadelphia.  In  Chicago,  Marshall  P'icld  and 
Company  have  an  army  of  10,000  at  work,  A  similar 
tendency  toward  large  companies  is  found  in  other  com- 
mercial organizations,  such  as  wholesaling  and  banking. 

Perhaps  you  are  like  most  young  men  who  survey  the 
commercial  field  ;  they  find  themselves  unable  to  own  one 
of  these  immense  stores  or  banks  and  so  plan  to  enter  its 
service  as  an  employee.  And  while  deciding  which  par- 
ticular business  to  enter,  they  also  think  over  the  equally 
practical  question,  Which  position  do  I  prefer  to  hold } 

EXERCISES 

1.  Which  particular  business  appeals  to  you  as  most  attractive.'' 

2.  What  advantages  are  there  in  engaging  in  business  for  yourself? 
What  disadvantages.'' 

3.  What  advantages  are  there  in  entering  the  employ  of  others? 
What  disadvantages? 

4.  Will  different  boys  feel  the  same  about  the  respective  merits  and 
drawbacks  covered  in  the  two  preceding  questions?  Give  reasons  for 
your  answer. 

5.  What  is  the  work  of  a  mercantile  agency? 

6.  Does  your  town  need  badly  some  special  store  which  no  one 
has  yet  opened? 

AFTER  CHOOSING  YOUR  PARTICULAR  BUSINESS 
WHICH   POSITION  SHALL  YOU  SELECT? 

Complexity  of  modern  commerce.  If  you  were  to  stand 
in  one  of  the  great  department  stores,  or  visit  a  gigantic 
mail-order  house,  or  inspect  the  central  offices  of  a  large 
insurance  company,  you  would  doubtless  be  so  confused  by 
the  complexities  spread  out  before  your  eyes  that  you  would 
not  know  until  after  careful  study  what  position  you  would 
choose  to  fill.  Yet  each  of  these  big  concerns  has  a  carefully 
planned  organization  in  which  each  employee  is  fitted  into 
some  definite  place  and  has  certain  duties  to  perform.     It 


82  OCCUPATIONS 

mi^ij^ht  aid  you,  perhaps,  in  thinking  out  what  position  you 
wanted  if  you  knew  something  of  this  general  organiza- 
tion and  arrangement.  While  each  concern  has  a  some- 
what different  plan  developed  to  meet  its  needs,  there  are 
similarities  of  organization  to  be  found  in  all  concerns. 
This  general  plan  which  they  have  adopted  may  be  indi- 
cated by  the  chart  on  the  following  page. 

Study  this  chart  carefully.  How  many  main  divisions  has 
this  organization  ?  In  what  three  ways  are  goods  sold  ?  Under 
what  main  division  of  the  business  does  answering  letters 
come  ?  How  many  kinds  of  accounts  are  there  .-*  If  a  Parisian 
milliner  raises  the  prices  of  hats  and  so  writes  to  the  firm,  to 
what  department  should  these  new  quotations  be  sent .-'  Some 
goods  are  crushed  in  transit ;  to  what  main  division  is  this 
matter  referred  ?  to  what  particular  part  of  this  division  ? 
Under  which  division  would  you  work  as  a  bookkeeper  ?  a 
salesman  ?    a  stenographer  ?    an  advertisement  writer  ? 

Selling  division.  It  is  the  people  employed  in  this  division 
who  represent  the  firm  to  its  customers  and  bring  money  into 
the  cash  box.  Most  of  them  sell  goods  to  the  customer  face  to 
face,  as  personal  salesmen  employed  in  retail  stores,  as  bank 
tellers,  or  out  on  the  road  selling  insurance  or  representing 
a  wholesale  house.  In  all  these  positions  there  are  certain 
things  you  can  do  to  become  a  more  successful  salesman  and 
tlnis  build  u\)  a  bigger  business. 

I .  /\uo-a<lr(/or  of  the  goods.  In  some  cases  this  requires 
long  preliminary  training.  In  department  stores  boys  of 
fourteen  to  eighteen  desiring  to  become  salesmen  begin 
as  stock  boys  or  floor  boys  at  $3  to  $4.50  per  week  and 
usually  become  salesmen  only  after  several  years  of  prelimi- 
nary training.  In  retail  groceries  boys  begin  as  helpers, 
errand  boys,  and  delivery  boys,  and  learn  the  business  in  that 
way.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  young  man  who  studies 
his  goods  learns  more  c|uicklv  to  know  them,  and  sooner  be- 
comes ready  to  satisf}'  this  first  rcc|uirement  of  a  salesman. 


COMMERCIAL  OCCL'  FATK  )N S 


x 

-/ 

o 

H 

L_, 

U 

y, 

l^ 

■^ 

K 

<*, 

C 

y 

t, 

^ 

o 

y. 

< 

2 

<; 

O 

w 

a 

CO 

■ 

0 

V 
C4 

-a 

.2 
0 
0 

s 

u<t; 


.— . 

0 

0 

S-5 

"rt 

Ut/J 

u 

^ 

aj 

£ 

E 

'^ 

e 

0 

u 

0 

c« 

J, 

M 

0 

;:; 

K 

■^ 

^ 

6^ 

'J 

t: 

J-, 

60 

c 

t^ 

84  OCCUPATIONS 

2.  Kjiozvledge  of  the  ciistoincr.  The  ordinary  clerk  lays 
goods  before  customer  after  customer  in  the  same  perfunctory 
way.  The  skilled  clerk  reads  people  like  a  daily  paper  and 
deftly  adapts  himself  and  his  wares  to  each  particular  cus- 
tomer. His  manners  are  good,  he  has  tact,  he  knows  how 
to  hold  his  temper  even  before  the  most  spiteful  person.  He 
dresses  himself  neatly,  and  he  arranges  his  stock  in  a  well- 
ordered  and  artistic  way  which  pleases  customers.  He  does 
not  say,  "I  should  like  to  sell  you  this  coat  for  $15,"  but 
"You  would  be  pleased  with  this  coat,  I  believe.  It  is  un- 
usually good  quality  for  the  price." 

3.  Loyalty  to  tJic  house.  The  house  has  built  up  a  big 
business  and  needs  to  have  a  big  organization.  You  are  not 
merely  Ben  Smith,  an  individual ;  you  are  a  member  of  a 
concern,  associated  with  hundreds  of  other  employees.  You 
are  called  upon  to  fit  yourself  into  this  SN'stem  and,  in  order 
to  do  so,  you  should  compl)-  willingly  with  the  requests  made 
of  you.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  not  an  ideal  salesman  who 
completely  effaces  himself.  You  should  always  look  out  for 
the  best  interests  of  the  house.  When  in  doubt,  when 
instructions  are  vague,  when  the  new  thing  faces  you, 
remember  that  the   house  wants   results  and   do  your  best. 

4.  IJie  eiistoviers  interests.  The  foundation  of  your 
compan}''s  prosperity  is  good  service  to  customers.  Cheat- 
ing, rudeness,  poor  advice,  are  like  sticks  of  dynamite  placed 
in  this  foundation.  Of  the  assortment  and  prices  afforded 
by  your  house  you  should  see  that  your  customer  gets  what 
will  suit  him  best.  As  your  customers  move  toward  the  door, 
think  what  opinions  of  courteous  treatment  and  good  serxdce 
they  are  carrying  away. 

5.  Remuneration  of  salesmen.  Efficient  salesmen  are 
worth  a  great  deal  to  any  house.  The  salary  paid  the 
beginner  ranges  from  $10  to  $12  per  week,  while  that 
paid  the  experienced  man  is  from  $15  to  $20  per  week. 
Payment    is    often    conditional    on    the    sales    made,    and 


n 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  85 

exceptional  clerks  receive  salary  increases  accordingly.  In 
the  case  of  traveling  salesmen  this  often  mounts  to  highly 
satisfactory  figures.  Not  a  bad  way  to  start  as  a  salesman 
is  to  canvass  for  magazines,  books,  aluminum  ware,  soap, 
maps,  or  some  one  of  a  hundred  other  useful  and  attractive 
articles.  Try  this  for  a  few  days  at  least.  You  will  prob- 
ably not  make  much  money,  but  you  will  get  rich  returns 
in  experience.  Analyze  each  case,  why  you  sold  or  why  you 
failed  to  sell,  and  you  will  be  attending  the  best  school  of 
salesmanship  it  may  ever  be  your  fortune  to  find. 

6.  The  advertiser.  The  advertiser  does  not  meet  the  cus- 
tomers face  to  face,  but  puts  the  selling  talk  on  paper  and 
tries  to  catch  their  eye.  The  proper  place  to  secure  the  ad- 
vertising men,  it  would  seem,  is  from  behind  the  sales  coun- 
ter. Yet  few  clerks  have  the  breadth  of  view  required  or  the 
ability  to  set  forth  on  paper  a  good  sales  talk.  Hence  more 
advertising  men  have  come  into  the  business  by  way  of  news- 
paper work.  The  helper  to  the  advertising  man  is  paid  from 
$3  to  $6  per  week.  Those  who  have  some  training  or  who 
show  ability  as  helpers  may  draw  from  $\2  to  $30  per  week 
as  an  assistant.  Assistant  managers  receive  from  $20  to  $35 
per  week  ;  managers,  according  to  their  ability,  receive  from 
$40  to  $100  per  week, 

EXERCISES 

1.  Observe  salesmen  as  they  sell  to  you.  How  do  the  most  suc- 
cessful ones  meet  prospective  buyers  ?  How  do  they  find  out  what  you 
want  ?  What  plan  do  they  follow  when  they  do  not  have  what  you  ask 
for?  How  do  they  close  the  sale?    How  do  they  take  leave  of  you? 

2.  What  advantages  are  there  in  the  salesman's  work?  What 
disadvantages  ? 

3.  Talk  with  an  advertising  man.  Does  he  give  all  his  time  to  this 
work?  How  did  he  learn  the  business?  How  long  has  he  been  in  it? 
What  salary  does  he  receive  ? 

4.  Study  carefully  the  advertisements  in  some  high-grade  publica- 
tion, and  draw  up  a  list  of  qualifications  which  the  advertising  man 
should  possess. 


86  OCCLl'AI'lONS 

Buying  division,  i.  Nature  of  the  zvork.  Before  mer- 
chandise can  be  advertised  or  sold,  the  store  must  decide 
what  it  has  to  offer  ;  quotations  on  these  articles  must 
be  secured,  orders  must  be  placed,  and  the  stock  cared  for 
and  prepared  for  sale.  All  these  processes  are  in  charge  of 
the  buving  division.  In  department  stores,  for  example, 
the  work  of  this  division  is  further  divided  into  four  subdi- 
visions :  namely,  the  bu\'ing  organization  (the  employees 
being  buyers,  assistant  buyers,  heads  of  stock,  and  office 
clerks)  ;  the  receiving  room  (in  which  are  the  receivers, 
examiners,  bill  clerks,  and  porters,  whose  work  is  to  receive 
the  goods  ordered  b}'  the  bu}'ers)  ;  the  marking  room  (where 
goods  are  priced,  the  employees  being  termed  markers)  ;  and 
the  stock  room  (in  which  the  surplus  merchandise  is  stored 
until  called  for  at  the  retail  counters). 

2.  Rcmiiucration  mid  opportunities.  Boys  entering  the 
lowest  positions  receive  from  $3  to  $8  per  week.  They  can 
work  up  to  assistant  positions  paving  from  $15  to  $30  per 
week,  and  if  they  show  exceptional  ability  they  may  receive 
annual  salaries  of  from  $1000  to  many  thousands.  The 
outlook  for  well-c|ualirted  buyers  is  good  at  present.  "  But 
little  attention  up  to  this  time,"  writes  the  editor  of  "  Busi- 
ness Man's  Library,"  "  has  been  ]xiid  to  the  science  of 
buying  ;  this  too,  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that  there  is  no 
department  that  contributes  an\-  more  to  the  success  of  a 
business  than  that  concerned  with  the  purchase  of  material, 
stock,  and  supplies.  When  it  is  considered  that  buying  re- 
quires not  only  keen,  shrewd,  business  judgment  but  also  a 
vast  amount  of  technical  knowledge  compactly  arranged,  it 
is  evident  that  the  systematization  of  the  department  of  pur- 
chasing is  worth)'  of  careful  research,  study,  and  treatment." 
Large  rewards  are  to  be  given  the  }-oung  men  who  are  able 
to  do  this. 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  87 

EXERCISES 

1.  Visit  some  leading  store.    Find  out  liovv  the  buying  is  done. 

2.  Why  are  the  problems  of  buying  being  studied  .so  intently  by 
commercial  concerns  ? 

3.  What  plan  is  followed  in  purchasing  supplies  for  your  school  ? 

4.  A  dry-goods  firm  in  your  town  is  about  to  buy  a  540.000  winter 
stock.    What  problems  must  be  considered.'' 

5.  Think  over  the  various  things  a  buyer  must  know  and  do.  What 
are  the  essential  qualifications  for  a  good  buyer.'* 

Office  division,  i.  Complexity  of  t lie  i^'ork  and  qualifica- 
tions demanded.  There  is  a  vast  amount  of  routine  connected 
with  any  big  business.  Thousands  of  letters,  hundreds  of 
telegrams  and  telephone  calls,  pour  in  upon  the  main  house. 
The  salesmen  and  the  buyers  require  some  sort  of  a  clearing 
house  for  their  operations.  This  mass  of  detail  must  be 
classified,  attended  to,  and  recorded,  and  it  must  be  done 
with  accuracy  and  dispatch.  Such  is  the  work  of  the  office 
division.  Among  the  employees  in  this  division  are  office 
boys,  stenographers,  typewriters,  clerks,  paymasters,  cashiers, 
assistant  office  manager,  office  manager,  and  often  chief 
officials  of  the  firm. 

There  has  been  a  great  advance  in  office  practice  during 
the  last  few  years.  It  is  only  by  improved  filing  devices, 
better  business-getting  correspondence,  more  complete  sys- 
tematization  of  routine,  that  big  business  can  run  in  an 
orderly  way.  And  the  young  man  who  aims  at  office  work 
to-day  should  not  merely  write  the  old-time  "good  hand" 
and  be  "  quick  at  figures  "  r  he  should  use  a  typewriter 
and  an  adding  machine,  and  be  informed  on  all  the  new 
methods  of  securing  efficiency  in  office  practice. 

Hundreds  of  boys  will  sweep  out  the  office  carefully,  just 
like  any  mechanical  broom  ;  hundreds  of  stenographers  will 
turn  out  a  letter  with  no  more  thought  than  a  machine  ;  but 
the  office  boy  who  is  a  budding  business  manager  and  the 


88  OCCLPATIOXS 

stenographer  wlio  quickly  becomes  a  prix-ate  secretary  are 
eagerly  sought  bv  alert  business  men. 

2.  Rcmuucratioji  and  opportunities.  A  capable  \'oung 
man  may  secure  a  position  as  office  clerk  or  assistant  at  a 
salary  of  $8  to  $io  per  week.  Or  he  may  commence  as 
stenographer  and  typewriter  at  about  the  same  salary,  and 
after  several  years  advance  to  $25  or  $30  per  week. 

Here  let  us  quote  briefly  from  two  men  who  have  met 
a  large  success  in  this  held.  "  There  .is  no  calling,"  says 
E.  \\  Murphy,  Official  Reporter,  United  States  Senate, 
"  which  affords  such  an  opening  for  young  men  who  are  just 
starting  out  in  life  as  that  of  stenography.  The  demand  for 
stenographers  is  so  great  in  the  government  departments 
that  it  seems  impossible  to  supply  it." 

"If  I  were  fifteen  years  old  again,"  are  the  words  of 
Frederic  Irland,  Official  Reporter,  United  States  House  of 
Representatives,  "and  wanted  to  be  earning  $25,000  a  year 
in  some  great  business  by  the  time  I  was  thirty,  I  would 
study  to  become  a  good  amanuensis  and  get  into  the  manager's 
office  as  a  stenographer.  There  is  no  quicker,  easier  way  to 
'  burglarize  '  success." 

EXERCISES 

1.  \'isit  some  large  office  division.  Note  the  general  arrangement. 
What  efficient  methods  do  you  see  employed.'' 

2.  Talk  with  some  successful  business  man.  Learn  how  his  corre- 
spondence is  sorted  for  him  ;  how  his  telephone  calls  are  arranged  ;  how 
his  time  is  kept  free  from  interruption.  What  other  plans  does  he  have 
for  getting  much  work  done  easily.'* 

3.  Learn  something  of  each  of  the  following  :  Weekly  reminder  pad, 
letter  file,  carbon  copy,  card  index,  multigraph,  form  letter,  dictaphone, 
cash  register,  adding  machine,  mechanical  calculator. 

4.  What  is  the  test  of  a  good  business  letter.'*  of  its  style.''  of  its 
arrangement  on  the  page.'' 

5.  If  assigned  to  some  manager  as  stenographer  and  typewriter, 
how  could  you  become  more  valuable  to  him.''  What  advantages  over 
the  usual  stenographer's  work  has  the  position  of  private  secretary.'' 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  89 

Accounting  division.  I'Lach  day  there  must  be  a  careful 
listing  and  checking  up  of  all  transactions.  Every  purchase 
made  passes  through  a  certain  routine ;  any  inaccuracies 
must  be  detected  and  the  account  recorded  so  that  it  may 
easily  be  found  if  needed.  Every  sales  order,  whether  turned 
in  by  the  sales  people  or  customers,  must  have  the  same 
careful  attention  and  recording.  Accounts  with  persons  are 
to  be  kept  and  financial  statements  made.  All  this  work 
falls  to  the  accounting  division  which  may  be  separate  or, 
as  is  the  case  with  many  firms,  mere!}'  a  branch  of  the  office 
division. 

The  usual  entrance  to  this  division  is  as  bookkeeper.  The 
salary  is  about  $12  per  week  at  the  start  and  increases 
to  $20  or  325.  Capable  bookkeepers  frequently  advance  to 
the  better-paid  positions  of  cashier,  buyer,  or  head  of  the 
credit  or  cost  departments,  etc.  The  outlook  is  excellent  for 
well-trained  accountants. 

Credit  division.  If  the  firm  is  large  or  carries  many 
charge  accounts,  there  is  need  of  someone  to  investigate 
the  standing  of  customers  who  ask  for  credit,  to  approve  or 
reject  charge  sales,  to  estimate  the  total  credit  risks  carried, 
and  to  collect  accounts.  This  is  the  work  of  the  credit  man, 
and  if  the  volume  of  business  is  large  he  may  ha\'e  several 
assistants.  The  usual  start  in  this  department  is  as  collector. 
•  Traffic  division.  Should  the  firm  use  railroad  and  steam- 
ship service  a  great  deal,  a  series  of  problems  arises  regarding 
the  best  routes  over  which  to  have  goods  shipped,  what  sav- 
ings can  be  made  in  rates  over  different  lines,  and  what  are 
the  relative  advantages  of  freight,  express,  and  parcel  post. 
Such  problems  are  in  the  province  of  the  traffic  manager, 
who  may  be  an  independent  officer,  or  under  the  direction  of 
the  office  division.  He  also  takes  charge  of  any  damage 
claims  in  which  the  firm  may  be  involved.  There  are  not 
at  present  so  many  good  openings  in  this  division  as  in 
the  others. 


90  UCCLI'ATIOXS 

EXERCISES 

1.  Talk  with  a  bookkeeper.  Ask  him  how  he  learned  bookkeeping ; 
how  long  he  has  worked  at  it ;  what  salary  and  opportunities  he  con- 
siders there  are  for  young  men  as  bookkeepers. 

2.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  bookkeeper  and  an  accountant? 

3.  What  is  meant  by  the  initials  C.P.A.  signed  after  a  man's  name.? 
Of  what  importance  is  this  title  ? 

4.  Are  there  any  general  practicing  accountants  in  your  town .''  1  f 
so,  call  upon  one.  and  ask  him  about  his  profession. 

5.  X'isit  some  leading  store  or  bank.  Who  has  charge  of  the  credit 
work  ?    Does  he  rank  such  a  position  as  attractive  ? 

6.  Name  some  commercial  concerns  that  would  require  no  separate 
traffic  man :  some  in  which  his  work  would  be  of  considerable 
importance. 

CONDITIONS   OF  SERVICE   IN   COMMERCIAL 
OCCUPATIONS 

Variation  of  the  hours.  The  houns  per  day  in  commercial 
work  arc  much  fewer,  of  course,  than  in  agriculture.  Only 
in  small  villages  are  clerks  still  required  to  "open  up"  at 
7  A.M.  and  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  serve  the  last 
straggler  until  lo  p.m.  Grocery  clerks  as  a  rule  still  begin 
at  7  in  the  morning  and  remain  until  6  or  6.30  at  night, 
with  evening  hours  Saturday.  While  conditions  vary  with 
the  city  and  the  season  of  the  year,  dry-goods  clerks  often 
work  from  8.30  a.m.  to  5.30  or  6  I'.m.  and  to  9  or  10  p.m. 
on  Saturdays,  with  an  hour  off  for  lunch.  Stenographers, 
typewriters,  and  bookkeepers  generally  work  from  8.30  or 
9  A.M.  to  5  P.M.  Banking  hours  are  the  shortest,  yet  there 
is  much  to  do  both  before  the  opening  hour  at  9  a.m.  and 
after  the  closing  hour  in  the  afternoon. 

Condition  of  healthfulness.  As  to  heahh fulness,  tlie  con- 
ditions in  commercial  occupations  are  generally  good.  Hut 
in  some  grocen.'  and  drug  stores  and  in  the  older  dry-goods 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  91 

stores,  the  ventilation  is  often  poor,  and  the  Hghting  is 
occasionally  defective.  The  work  of  the  stenographer,  type- 
writer, bookkeeper,  and  retail  clerk  is  at  best  nerve-trying, 
and  the  end  of  the  day  is  liable  to  find  the  body  full  of 
fatigue  poisons.  The  employer  can  do  much  to  better  these 
conditions,  and  many  enterprising  firms  are  doing  this.  The 
employee  can  do  something  to  adjust  himself,  with  mini- 
mum fatigue,  to  such  conditions  by  maintaining  proper  habits 
of  diet,  recreation,  and  sleep. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Visit  some  dry-goods  store.  What  are  the  working  hours  of  the 
employees.^  Are  vacations  allowed  employees.''  If  so,  are  these  vaca- 
tions with  or  without  pay  ?  Find  out  the  same  facts  about  banks,  drug 
stores,  grocery  stores,  and  confectioneries. 

2.  In  which  businesses  are  there  seasonable  fluctuations,  with  much 
help  needed  during  the  holidays  and  many  men  laid  off  during  July 
and  August  ?    What  might  this  mean  to  you  personally  ? 

3.  In  which  is  the  demand  for  employment  relatively  steady  ? 

4.  Have  you  ever  worked  in  a  store  or  been  in  one  where  the  venti- 
lation, heating,  and  lighting  were  bad?  where  they  were  particularly 
good .'' 

HOW  YOUNG   MEN   ENTER  THE  COMMERCIAL 
OCCUPATION.S 

Varying  requirements  for  entrance.  Since  commercial 
work  is  so  diversified  in  nature,  the  requirements  for  en- 
trance may  also  be  expected  to  cover  a  wide  range  of 
qualifications.  In  some  positions,  as  that  of  grocery  boy, 
meager  attainments  will  secure  a  place.  In  others,  as  that  of 
accountant,  a  high-grade  preparation  is  necessary.  Quota- 
tions from  letters  received  from  the  employment  managers 
of  two  first-rank  insurance  organizations  will  be  of  interest 
in  this  connection. 


92  OCCUPATIONS 

STATEMENTS  FROM   EMPLOYMENT  MANAGERS  CONCERN- 
ING ENTRANCE  CONDITIONS 

With  rare  exceptions  we  recruit  our  force  of  men  from  boys  of  six- 
teen or  seventeen  years  of  age.  Clerical  positions  requiring  older  and 
more  experienced  men  are  filled  by  promotions.  Many  of  our  boys  have 
developed  into  officers  and  superintendents :  some  have  graduated  into 
cashierships  at  our  agencies  scattered  throughout  the  United  States; 
while  others  have  become  very  successful  solicitors.  True  these  pro- 
motions are  the  exceptions,  but  nevertheless  they  prove  that  the 
opportunity  is  there. 

Salaries  are  on  a  graded  scale,  the  general  plan  being  to  give  some 
increase  each  year  if  possible.  We  pay  $25  per  month  for  the  first 
year,  automatically  increasing  this  amount  annually  until  $35  per  month 
is  reached.  The  ability  of  the  clerk  and  the  character  of  the  work  have 
much  influence  on  the  salary.  From  boys  they  graduate  into  the  junior 
clerkship  class  at  higher  compensation. 

We  always  have  more  applications  than  can  be  considered.  This  fact 
enables  us  to  make  selection.  Character,  intelligence,  adaptation,  and 
education  have  first  consideration.  Every  applicant  before  acceptance 
is  examined  in  the  fundamental  principles  of  arithmetic  and  in  writing 
and  spelling.  W^e  file  all  applications  rated  75  per  cent  or  better,  the 
highest-rated  boys,  of  course,  being  given  first  choice  by  us  when  a 
vacancy  occurs. 

This  plan  necessarily  requires  a  boy  to  have  at  least  a  thorough 
grammar-school  education,  and  my  experience  has  proved  that  the  boy 
who  attends  high  school  for  three  or  four  years  is  far  in  advance  of  the 
grammar-school  graduate,  but  the  boy  who  has  only  attended  one  year 
at  high  school  and  left  at  a  point  where  the  high-school  education  was 
to  do  him  the  most  good  is  less  qualified  than  the  grammar-school 
graduate.  This  may  not  seem  consistent,  but  it  is  true  from  my  view- 
point nevertheless. 

We  provide  instruction  for  selected  clerks  in  advanced  arithmetic, 
elementary  and  advanced  algebra,  and  in  the  use  of  English  with 
especial  regard  to  correspondence.  Ambitious  clerks  soon  realize  their 
shortcomings  and  many  avail  themselves  of  the  evening  classes  in  the 
grammar  and  high  schools,  and  the  courses  in  accounting  and  book- 
keeping conducted  by  the  universities  near  us. 

It  will  be  .seen  from  the  above  that  no  especial  training  is  necessary 
for  our  work.  We  want  native  ability  with  the  elements  of  a  general 
education.    Upon  this  foundation  we  do  our  own  training. 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  93 

su(;(;estiuns  to  rRosPECTiVE  business  men 

No  matter  what  business  you  choose  or  which  commer- 
cial position  you  enter,  there  are  two  practical  ways  by  which 
you  can  make  the  most  of  yourself. 

Self-preparation.  Unless  necessary  in  your  case,  is  it  not 
a  mistake  to  begin  as  an  office  or  stock  boy  at  $3  a  week 
and  serve  two  or  three  years  at  a  salary  under  $6  per  week  ? 
If  you  can  attend  high  school  or  a  business  college,  will  not 
your  time  spent  in  study  be  worth  much  more  to  you  in  lay- 
ing the  broader  foundation  which  business  men  in  this  age 
surely  need  ?  If  possible,  go  to  college  and  study  general 
economics,  sociology,  and  political  science.  Take  the  spe- 
cial courses  in  commercial  law,  accounting,  advertising,  and 
business  administration  —  courses  which  so  few  colleges 
offer  at  present  that  the  supply  of  trained  men  cannot  soon 
become  too  large.  Still  you  may,  although  well  trained, 
have  to  begin  at  the  bottom  ;  but  your  advancement  will  be 
rapid,  and  in  the  end  you  will  distance  the  poorly  prepared 
youth  who  began  years  before  you  did. 

Let  us  suppose  that  upon  graduation  from  college  you 
enter  the  ranks  of  commercial  stenographers.  "  What  better 
way  is  there  to  learn  a  business  than  through  stenography.? 
Trusted  with  most  valuable  business  secrets,  occupying  close 
and  confidential  relations  with  managers  and  executives, 
opportunities  for  advancement  in  the  business  inevitably 
present  themselves.  Knowledge  that  many  men  now  prom- 
inent in  the  commercial  and  political  world,  such  as  Cor- 
telyou,  ex-Senator  Mason,  and  many  others,  began  their 
careers  as  stenographers  will  serve  as  an  inspiration.  A 
knowledge  of  shorthand  will  take  from  the  college  man  that 
feeling  of  unpreparedness  for  the  real  battles  that  are  to 
come.  It  will  give  him  a  grip,  a  hold  upon  the  world  of 
business  that  will  strengthen  his  resolves  and  whet  the 
edge  of  his  ambition.    He  can  always,  in  almost  any  event, 


94  OCCUPATIONS 

earn  a  good  salary  ;  and  if  he  applies  himself  diligently  to 
the  study  he  can  with  little  difficulty  become  a  high-grade 
stenographer,  the  kind  that  business  men  seek,  and,  having 
found,  are  loath  to  lose,  regardless  of  salar}'." 

Preparation  for  advancement.  Once  well  qualified  and  in 
a  good  opening  position,  do  not  begin  to  fossilize.  No  barna- 
cles are.welcomed  on  the  ship  of  progress.  If  you  are  a  sales- 
man, study  to  become  an  expert.  Observe  the  other  salesmen, 
look  with  deeper  penetration  into  human  nature,  think  over 
selling  problems,  read  books  and  articles  on  salesmanship. 

If  you  are  a  bookkeeper  and  the  years  seem  to  find  you 
at  the  same  old  desk  with  no  prospects  ahead,  remember 
that  there  is  the  intricate  but  interesting  and  well-paid  pro- 
fession of  accountancy.  And  some  books  on  accounting  — 
of  which  there  are  many  —  will  be  a  morning  sun  on  your 
dark  horizon.       '  '  \     .  '         '  ' ''    ■'   *    "  •■ 

There  is  a  man  ahead  of  }-ou  who  is  your  chief.  Study 
him  and  find  out  his  strong  points.  Consider  what  quali- 
fications are  necessary  for  holding  such  a  position  and,  so 
far  as  possible,  make  them  yours.  Read  some  of  the  many 
helpful  business  books.  There  are  to  be  had  first-class  books 
on  business  management,  corporation  finance,  accounting 
practice,  business  efficiency,  almost  any  subject  you  need  to 
study.  Business  men  have  learned  that  in  books  many  of 
their  hard  knots  are  untied.  And  by  studying  the  right 
ones  you  will  learn  how  to  fill  successfully  the  position 
ahead  of  you.  Some  day  \our  superior  will  have  moved  on 
or  moved  out,  and  opportunity  will  face  the  office  force. 
Are  you  ready  .'* 

Here  is  a  concrete  case  for  illustration  :  Some  ycning  men 
in  New  York  City  decided  to  study  evenings  in  a  school 
of  commerce.  Their  average  salary  earned  during  the  day 
was  $75  per  month.  The  second  year  it  was  $93  and  the 
third  year  it  had  increased  to  $120.  The  fact  that  their 
salaries  were  increased  5^45  a  month  during  the  three  years 


COMMERCIAL  OCCUPATIONS  95 

when,  in  addition  to  their  regular  duties,  they  carried  these 
commercial  courses  in  the  evening,  indicates  a  decidedly 
promising  future  for  them.  Such  cases  may  be  found  not 
alone  in  New  York  but  in  the  United  States  as  a  whole. 
In  our  great  arena  of  business  there  is  work  to  do,  much 
skilled,  high-class  work,  and  its  rewards  will  go  to  the  men 
of  industry,  ability,  and  training  whose  ideals  are  high. 

EXERCISES 

1.  How  do  you  explain  the  fact  that  later  in  life  high-school  and 
college  graduates  overtake  and  surpass  those  who  "  begin  at  once  "  ? 

2.  Interview  some  successful  business  man  you  know.     Make  out 
a  list  of  the  different  steps  in  his  career. 

3.  Which  business  positions  call  for  rather  bookish  study  .^    Which 
for  a  study  primarily  of  human  nature.'' 

4.  W^hat  opportunities  have  you  for  studying   successful  business 
men  and  methods? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Allen,  F.  J.  Business  Employments.  Ginn  and  Company,  Boston. 
$1.00. 

Brisco,  N.  a.  Economics  of  Business.  The  Macmillan  Company, 
New  York,  1913.    $1.50. 

Business  Man's  Library.  Ten  volumes.  A.  W.  Shaw  Company, 
Chicago,    1907. 

Carnegie,  Andrew.  Empire  of  Business.  Doubleday,  Page  &  Com- 
pany.   Garden  City,  New  York,  1902.    $3.00. 

Cody,  Sherwin.  How  to  do  Business  by  Letter.  The  Ronald  Press 
Co.,  New  York,  191 2.    $1.00. 

Davis,  R.,  and  Lingham,  Clarence  H.  Business  English  and  Corre- 
spondence.   Ginn  and  Company,  Boston,  1914.    $1.00. 

Dawson,  Miles  M.  The  Business  of  Life  Insurance.  The  A.  S.  Barnes 
Company,  New  York,  1906.    $[.50. 

Fiske,  Amos  K.  The  Modern  Bank.  D.  Appleton  and  Company,  New 
York,  1904.    $1.50. 


96  OCCUPATIONS 

FowLEK,  N.  C.  Jr.    Practical  Salesmanship.    Little.  Brown,  and  Com- 
pany, Boston,  191 1.    #1.00. 
Handbook  for  Advertisers.    International  Textbook  Company,  Scranton. 

Pa.,  igio.    50  cents. 
HiGGEXBOTHA.M,  Harlow  N.    The  Making  of  a  Merchant.    Forbes  & 

Company,  Chicago,  1906.    $1.50. 
HuFFCUT,  Ernest  W.    Elements  of  Business  Law.    (Jinn  and  Com- 
pany, Boston,  1905.    $1.00. 
Klein,  F.  L    Elements  of  Accounting.    D.  Appleton  and  Company, 

New  York.  191  i.    Si. 50. 
Moody,  Walter   D.     Men  who  Sell  Things.      A.  C.  McClurg  and 

Company.  Chicago,  1911.    $1.00. 
Phelps,  Arthur,  and  Carnegie,  Andrew.    Transaction  of  Business 

and  how  to  Win  Fortune.    Forbes  &  Company,  Chicago.    $  i  .00. 
Practical  Real  Estate  Methods.   Thirty  Real  Estate  Experts.    West  Side 

Y.  M.  C.  A.    New  York,  1909.    $2.00. 
Pratt,  Sereno  S.   Work  of  Wall  Street.    D.  Appleton  and  Company, 

New  York,  1912.    $1.75. 
Prendergast,  W.  a.    Credit  and  its  LIses.   I).  Appleton  and  Company, 

New  York,  1912.    $\.SO. 
Salesmen's    Handbook.     International   T^tbook    Company,    Scranton, 

Pa.    50  cents. 
Sheldon,  A.  F.    Art  of  Selling.    Sheldon  L'niversity  Press,  Libertyville, 

111.,  1911.    $1.25. 
Stockwell,  Herbert  G.    Essential  Elements  of  Business  Character. 

Fleming  H.  Revell  Company,  New  York,  191  i.    60  cents. 
WTiite,  Horace.    Money  and  Banking.    Ginn  and  Company.  Boston, 

1911.    #1.50. 
WooLLEY,  Edward  M.    Junior  Partner.    E.  P.  Dutton  and  Company. 

New  York,  191  2.    51.25. 

Pamphlets 

Accountancy  and  the  Business  Professions.    Students'  Aid  Committee, 

25  Jefferson  Ave.,  Brooklyn,  N.Y.    10  cents. 
Banking.    The  Vocation  Bureau,  Boston,  191 1.    25  cents. 
Department  Store.  The.   The  Vocation  Bureau.    Boston,  191 2.    50  cents. 
Grocer,  The.    The  Vocation  Bureau.    Boston.  191 1.    15  cents. 


C()MMERCL\L  OCCL'PA  TlONS  97 

Periodicals 

Advcrlising  and  Scllini:;.    Monthly.    Advertising  and  Selling  Conipanw 

New  York.    52.00  per  year. 
Buildings  and  Building  Management.    Monthly.    Patterson  Publishing 

Co.,  Chicago.    $2.00  per  year. 
Dry  Goods.    Monthly.     Dry  Goods  Publishing  Company,   New  York. 

$2.00  per  year. 
Dry  Goods  Economist.    Weekly.    New  York.    $5.00  per  year. 
Dty  Goods  Reporter.    Weekly.    Chicago.    $3.00  per  year. 
Grand  Rapids  Furniture  Record.     Monthly.     Grand  Rapids.     S2.00 

per  year. 
Hardware    Age.     Weekly.     David    Williams    Company,    New    York. 

$2.00    per    year. 
Magazine  of  Wall  Street.    Biweekly.    New  York.    $3.00  per  year. 
Modern  Grocer.    Weekly.    Chicago.    ,$2.00  per  year. 
Office  Appliances.    Monthly.    Chicago.    $1.50  per  year. 
Printers'  Ink.   W^eekly.    Printers'  Ink  Publishing  Company.  New  York. 

$2.00  per  year. 
System.    Monthly.    A.  W.   Shaw   Company,  Chicago.    With  premium 

book  $2.00  per  year. 
The  Business  Educator.    Monthly.    Zaner  and  Bloser,  Columbus,  Ohio. 

$  1 .00  per  year. 
Tlie  National  Banker.    Monthly.    Chicago.    $2.00  per  year. 
The  Real  Estate  Magasine.    Monthly.    New  York.    $2.00  per  year. 

.Vkticles 

Brett,  GF.ORCiE  P.    "Book  I'ublishing  and  its   Present  Tendencies." 

Atlantic  Monthly,  April,  191 3,  pp.  454-462. 
Chesebrough,  William.   "Real   Estate."    Careers   for  the  Coming 

Men  (by  Whitelaw  Reid  and  Others),  pp.  1 45-156. 
Davis.  H.    "  Department  Stores."'   Everybody's  Magasine,  Vol.  X\T1, 

p   312. 
DouBLEDAY,    F.    N.     "  Publishing."     Careers  for   the   Coming   Men. 

pp.  219-226. 
Drvdex,  J.    F.     "  Life   Insurance."      Careers   for   the   Coming   Men, 

pp.   157-170.     Saalfield  Company,  Akron,  Ohio. 
Frederick,  J.  G.    "  Advertising  Man's  Place  in  Selling  Organization. "" 

Printers'"  Ink.  October  13,  1910,  pp.  20-25. 
Jones,  C.  E.    "Advertising  Manager's  Job."    Printers'  Ink.  October  19. 

igi  I,  pp.  58-62. 


9cS  OCCUPATIONS 

Smith,  Chakles  F.    "Commercial  Life."    Careers  for  the  Coming  Men. 

pp.  45-52. 
SwEETLAXD,   C.  A.     "  Behind   the   Scenes  in   a  Department  Store." 

Munsey,  \o\.  XX,  p.  528. 
Thwing,  G.  Y.  "  Insurance  as  a  Business."'  Cf^vz/f'/r'/ZA?;/,  Vol.  XXXIV, 

P-  575- 

Information  ox  Business  Books 

The  Ronald  f^ress  Company.  20  A'esey  Street.  New  York,  publishes 
a  pamphlet  listing  a  carefully  prepared  "  One  Hundred  of  the 
World's  Best  Business  Books."    Sent  free  on  request. 


CHAPTER  VI 

TRANSPORTATION 

This  may  be  called  the  Age  of  Communication,  the  circulation  both  of 
things,  including  men,  and  of  ideas.  —  Lester  F.  Ward 

The  fact  that  transportation  makes  our  social  order  possible,  that  it  is 
necessary  for  carrying  on  business,  and  that  our  political  well-being 
depends  upon  it,  causes  us  to  regard  the  services  of  a  common  carrier 
as  of  a  public  nature.  —  Emory  R.  JohnsOxN 

STEAM  RAILROADING 

Without  trains  our  great  commercial  prosperity  could  not 
have  been  developed.  It  is  only  because  of  the  through 
freight  that  the  Massachusetts  boy  may  have  California 
oranges  for  breakfast  and  the  Saskatchewan  farmer  may 
become  rich  selling  wheat  in  the  Chicago  grain  market.  But 
railroads  do  not  merely  ship  freight ;  they  carry  people.  The 
total  number  of  railroad  tickets  sold  in  191 2  would,  if  equally 
distributed,  give  eleven  railroad  trips  to  every  man,  woman, 
and  child  of  our  93,000,000  people.  Perhaps  you  took  some 
of  these  trips  yourself,  and  appreciate  what  it  means  to 
travel.  The  carriage  at  the  door,  the  ticket  ofifice,  the  panting 
engine,  the  flying  landscape  —  you  dip  over  the  rim  of  the 
previously  unknown,  and  return  broader  minded  than  before. 

Beginnings  of  transportation.  Long  before  James  Watt 
mused  over  the  rattling  teakettle  lid,  even  long  before 
Marco  Polo  dreamed  of  a  rich  Chinese  trade,  primitive 
people  lived  such  narrow  lives  that  if  they  traveled  one 
hundred  miles  they  came  to  a  foreign  country  with  a  lan- 
guage so  different  that  they  were  compelled  to  use  gestures 
and   grimaces  instead  of  words.     These  primitive   people, 

99 


lOO 


OCCL'PATIONS 


however,  made  the  rude  beginnings  of  the  wonderful  trans- 
portation sv'stem  we  now  enjoy,  "  lie  who  first,  laying  hold 
of  a  floating  bough,"  says  Tylor,  "  found  it  would  bear  him 
up  in  the  water,  had  made  a  beginning  in  navigation.  The 
rudest  forms  of  floats,  rafts,  and  boats  may  still  be  seen  in 


A  through  express  train 

This  splendid  train  runs  from  New  York  to  Chicago  in  eighteen  hours.    Passengers 
can  eat  well-cooked  meals,  read  the  late  magazines,  and  sleep  in  a  comfortable  bed 

while  en  route 


use  among  savages,  and  even  the  civilized  traveler  coming 
to  a  stream  or  lake  may  be  glad  to  make  shift  with  a  log  or 
bundle  of  bulrushes  to  help  him  across,  and  carr}'  his  gun 
and  clothes  over  dry."  ^ 

Anthropologists  describe  most  interestingly  how  rafts  on 
the  Tigris  and  1^2uphrates  rivers  were  supported  by  blown 

1  E.  B.  Tylor,  Anthropology. 


TRANSPOR'l'ATKJN  lOi 

sheepskins,  and  how  r^gyptian  potters  brought  their  wares 
down  the  Nile  in  rafts  buoyed  up  by  their  earthen  pots. 
They  explain  the  way  men  developed  the  first  clumsy  rafts 
into  boats,  and  how  the  Phoenicians,  the  Greeks,  the  Cartha- 
ginians, the  Romans,  the  Norsemen,  added  bit  by  bit  to  this 
line  of  development  until  their  successors  to-day  cross  the 
Atlantic  in  approximately  four  days,  in  a  steamship  supplying 
all  the  comforts  of  a  modern  hotel.  They  can  also  picture 
the  remote  beginnings  of  the  wheel,  the  development  of  the 
rude  cart,  the  war  chariot,  and  the  carriage.  It  is  for  the 
modern  historian,  however,  to  tell  the  story  of  how  the  car- 
riage and  the  steam  engine  were  combined  and  a  railroad 
was  the  result. 

Development  of  American  railroading.  The  pioneer 
American  railroad  was  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio,  its  first 
rail  being  laid  Jul}'  4,  1828,  by  Charles  Carroll,  the  only 
man  then  living  who  had  signed  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence. So  relatively  expensive  was  railroad  building  then 
that  considerably  more  w'as  spent  in  la)'ing  this  road  to  the 
Ohio  River  than  the  entire  wealth  of  Baltimore's  citizens. 
And  so  ignorant  were  the  promoters  of  this  enterprise  as 
to  the  nature  of  the  undertaking  that  '"  they  had  to  appoint 
a  committee  to  go  and  find  out  what  a  railroad  was  before 
beginning  operations." 

The  early  builders  of  this  and  other  lines  were  scorned 
by  their  conservative  neighbors.  When  Oliver  Evans  at- 
tempted to  get  a  patent  for  "  a  steam  wagon,"  the  Pennsyl- 
vania legislators  ignored  his  request  "as  the  hallucination 
of  a  disordered  mind."  His  statement,  "the  time  will  come 
when  people  will  travel  in  stages  moved  by  steam  engines 
from  one  city  to  another,  almost  as  fast  as  birds  can  Hy, 
fifteen  or  twenty  miles  an  hour,"  was  ridiculed.  An  Eng- 
lishman proved  to  his  contemporaries  that  rapid  railroad 
travel  caused  a  new  disease,  it  being  a  notorious  fact,  he 
declared,  "  that  the  brains  of  business  men  were  so  addled 


I02  OCCUPATIONS 

by  the  swiftness  of  the  journey  from  Manchester  to  Liver- 
pool or  London  that  they  often  forgot  what  they  went  for, 
and  had  to  write  home  to  find  out."  "  Strange  as  it  may 
seem,"  said  Henry  Wilhams,  one  of  the  early  railroad  direc- 
tors, in  a  speech  in  Worcester  at  the  celebration  of  the 
opening  of  the  Boston  and  Worcester  Railroad,  July  6, 
1835,  "these  enemies  were  to  be  found  principally  among 
the  rich  and  powerful  —  the  very  class  of  men  who  pos- 
sessed  the   most   ample   means,    and   so   might  have   been 


♦  A  powerful  freight  locomotive 

Its  weight  is  752,000  pounds,  its  boiler  pressure  is  200  pounds  to  the  square  inch,  its 
drive  wheels  are  16  in  numlx-r,  and  it  can  exert  a  continuous  pull  on  the  drawbar  of 

1 38,000  pounds 

expected  to  be  first  and  foremost  in  advocating  and  prose- 
cuting an  important,  a  notable  public  enterprise.  Very  many 
great  men,  very  many  rich  men  refused  all  participation, 
scoffed  at  our  project,  pointed  at  some  of  us  the  fingers  of 
scorn  and  bandied  such  epithets  as  '  hare-brained  enthusi- 
asts,' 'visionaries,'  who  'almost  deserve  to  be  sent  to  the 
madhouse.'  " 

But  the  railroad  was  based  upon  right  principles  and 
was  bound  to  succeed.  Its  early  advocates,  however,  made 
numerous  mistakes  and  were  subjected  to  many  discourage- 
ments, but  each  decade  witnessed  an  increased  mileage.  In 
1830  there  were  23  miles  of  track  in  the  United  States; 
in  1840,  2818;   in  1870,  52,914;  in  1900,  193,346;  and 


TRANSPORTATION  103 

to-day  the  main  tracks,  second  tracks,  and  sidings  total  such 
an  enormous  length  that  they  would  send  a  double  band 
of  steel  rails  around  the  world  fourteen  times  with  several 
thousand  miles  of  track  left  over.  This  exceeds  the  mileage 
of  all  Europe  by  10  per  cent,  and  is  two  fifths  of  the  entire 
railway  mileage  of  the  world.  Our  railroads  have  a  vast 
army  of  1,669,000  men  working  for  them,  and  of  such  em- 
ployees you  may  see  fit  to  be  one. 

Different  phases  of  railroad  work.  When  someone  says 
railroading,  )'ou  may  think  of  an  engineer  leaning  out  of 
his  cab  window,  a  brass-buttoned  conductor,  or  a  brakeman 
on  the  top  of  some  freight  train.  Yet  there  are  many  other 
kinds  of  workmen,  a  fact  which  indicates  a  considerable 
variety  of  openings.  We  can,  perliaps,  present  this  broad 
field  of  railroading  most  adequately  by  answering  the  ques- 
tion, What  services  must  be  performed  by  the  entire  organi- 
zation of  a  railroad  company.?  (i)  Roads  must  be  built, 
bridges  thrown  across  streams,  stations  and  section  houses 
constructed.  And  after  these  are  completed  they  must  be 
kept  in  good  repair.  In  addition,  a  large  amount  of  equip- 
ment, such  as  engines  and  cars,  must  be  bought  and  also 
kept  in  repair.  Then  these  engines  and  cars  must  be  made 
into  trains,  manned,  and  run  over  the  tracks.  These  activi- 
ties constitute  the  most  conspicuous  phase  of  railroading, 
but  they  are  only  one  part  of  it.  (2)  Business  must  be 
secured  from  shippers  and  passengers,  and  charges  made. 
(3)  Accounts  must  be  kept  with  as  much  care  as  in  a  bank 
or  department  store,  legal  matters  must  be  attended  to,  and 
the  enterprise  financed.  (4)  Supplies  must  be  purchased, 
real  estate  bought  and  sold,  insurance  taken  out,  and  vari- 
ous relief  policies  worked  out  in  connection  with  the  em- 
ployees. To  see  that  these  four  general  duties  are  properly 
performed,  the  railroad  organizers  create  separate  depart- 
ments. These  will  now  be  discussed  in  turn,  and  openings 
for  young  men  pointed  out. 


I04  OCCUPATIONS 

EXERCISES 

1.  ^\'hiL■h  service  do  you  consider  of  j^reatest  social  importance  — 
the  carr\ing  of  freight,  people,  or  messages? 

2.  Of  what  governmental  importance  are  railroads?  Why  did  the 
Roman  conquerors  build  roads?  Why  did  the  United  States  govern- 
ment give  land  bounties  to  Western  railroads  ? 

3.  On  what  railroad  do  you  live  ?    W' ho  is  its  president  ? 

4.  Who  appoints  a  railroad's  president?    Who  owns  a  railroad? 

5.  If  any  of  your  friends  have  gone  into  railroading,  what  are  their 
present  positions? 

6.  Secure  if  possible  from  your  local  railroad  company  its  plan  or 
chart  of  organization.    \\'hat  titles  have  the  leading  officials? 

Operating  DepartiMext 

This  is  the  most  comprehensive  department  in  railroad 
organization.  Different  companies  \'ary  somewhat  in  the 
way  they  ha\'e  organized  this  department,  but  the  following 
diagram  sets  forth  the  general  arrangement.  Study  this 
chart  with  care  and  find  answers  to  such  questions  as  fol- 
low. Who  is  the  chief  official  ?  What  six  executives  are 
responsible  directly  to  him  .?  Over  how  much  of  the  road 
has  the  general  superintendent  charge  ? 

If  an  engineer  and  fireman  take  charge  of  their  engine 
at  a  certain  town,  thev  do  not  run  on  and  on  to  the  end  of 
the  line,  but  stop  at  the  next  division  point ;  one  division  is 
their  I'un  for  the  day.  Here  they  rest  for  several  hours  and 
then  return,  hauling  a  second  train  back  to  their  home  town. 
This  shows  how  roads  are  broken  up  into  "  divisions." 
Who  is  the  chief  official  of  the  division.?  Over  what  sub- 
departments  has  he  charge  ?  There  are  three  main  parts 
of  the  operating  department,  each  of  which  will  now  be 
described  briefly. 

Roadway  subdepartment.  This  is  imder  the  direct  man- 
agement of  the  division  road  master.    As  a  general  rule  he 


TRANSl'OK'I'A  riON 


105 


c' 

=     7-. 

-  - 

^ 

"  ? 

-   :^ 

-a 

".^ 

7-.J- 

'it 

0  ^ 

c- 

5X2 

M  n: 

■f. 

~  — 

t-  i; 

3 

-■2  a 
ffi.S 

1 

s 

5 

u. 

,5) 
■7. 

c 

■7. 

ir. 

u 

c 

a 
a 
'■J 

u 

.', 

-^ 

;. 

'^ 

ct 

D 

c 

t^ 

r-i 

.;; 

0 

t: 

'-'■ 

5  c 

- 

.i 

c^     E 


be  'J 


lo6  (XXIPAIJOXS 

does  not  take  charge  of  the  construction  work,  this  usually 
being  let  out  by  contract  and  performed  by  other  than  rail- 
road employees.  The  same  is  true  of  the  driving  of  new 
tunnels,  the  erecting  of  large  new  bridges,  and,  in  some 
cases,  the  making  of  new  buildings.  Consequently  boys  in- 
terested in  these  forms  of  construction  work  should  seek  a 
position  with  some  contractor  specializing  in  railroad  work. 

1.  IFof'i'  of  sccticni  and  repair  vieii.  The  lowest  grade 
of  employees  under  the  road  master  are  the  section  men  or 
track  laborers,  each  gang  of  whom  has  charge  of  keeping  in 
good  condition  some  six  to  eight  miles  of  track.  The  section 
men's  pay  averages  $1.50  and  the  section  foreman's  about 
S2  per  day,  but  in  addition  the  latter  receives  free  of  charge 
a  house  to  live  in,  fuel,  water,  and  oil  for  his  lamps.  His 
remuneration  is  thus  quite  satisfactory.  While  tlie  work  is 
hard  physically,  it  is  out  of  doors  and  healthful.  The  lower 
positions  are  generally  filled  by  uneducated  foreigners,  but 
most  roads  employ  also  promising  young  Americans  as 
assistant  foremen  at  about  $1.75  per  day  in  order  to  train 
them  for  the  foremanships.  Closely  related  to  the  work  of 
the  section  men  just  mentioned  is  that  of  bridge-repair 
gangs,  ballasting  gangs,  pile-driver  gangs,  as  well  as  of 
those  working  with  concrete,  upon  buildings,  or  in  the 
water  service.  These  activities  offer  good  opportunities  to 
learn  the  more  desirable  construction  work. 

2.  Signal  niaintaino's.  The  signal  department  provides 
work  considerably  different.  For  a  boy  who  has  an  inclina- 
tion toward  electricity  this  is  a  good  place  for  practical  ex- 
perience. Signal  maintainers  average  about  $70  to  $75  a 
month,  and  the  chances  for  employment  are  increasingly 
good  since  this  department  of  road  service  is  being  steadily 
expanded  every  year. 

Machinery  subdepartment.  This  is  under  the  direct 
charge  of  the  division  master  mechanic.  His  department 
includes  three  different  kinds  of  work. 


TRANSPORTATION 


107 


1.  Duties  of  car  men.  l^^irst,  the  cars  must  be  inspected 
and  repaired.  This  is  the  work  of  car  men.  When  your  train 
stops  at  division  points  you  hear  their  hammers  tapping  on 
the  wheels.  After  your  train  leaves  they  return  to  the  car 
yards  to  repair  the  rolling  stock  damaged  through  long  use 
or  in  wrecks.    Their  wage  is  from  $2  to  $2,40  per  day. 

2.  Work  of  ro7indhonse  men  and  mechanics.  Second,  the 
engines  must  be  housed,  inspected,  repaired,  and  otherwise 


A  railroad  roundhouse 

The  table  on  which  the  engines  are  turned  is  shown  here  in  the  center  of  the  semi- 
circle.   Each  section  of  the  building  is  termed  a  ''•  stall,"  and  this  roundhouse  will 
house  about  twenty  locomotives 


cared  for  at  the  end  of  each  run  over  the  division.  This 
work  is  done  by  the  roundhouse  men,  who  are  so  called 
because  their  activities  are  in  and  about  a  house  built  for  the 
engines  in  a  semicircular  shape  around  the  turntable.  Then 
there  are  the  services  of  the  machinists,  blacksmiths,  and 
boiler  makers,  skilled  workmen,  whose  trades  will  be  con- 
sidered in  a  later  chapter.  The  other  employees  have  no 
special  training.    They  knock  the  fire  out  from  the  grates 


I08  OCCUPATIONS 

when  the  engine  comes  in,  run  it  into  the  proper  round- 
house stall,  wash  out  the  boiler,  wipe  the  engine  until  it 
shines,  and  fire  it  up  again  when  another  trip  is  to  be  made. 
There  are  about  225,000  shop  men  doing  such  work,  and 
their  average  pay  is  $2.25  per  day.  Part  of  this  force  is  on 
the  night  shift  and  Sunday  work  is  common. 

3.  JVork  and  advancement  of  firemen  and  engineers. 
Third,  the  engineers  and  their  firemen  take  charge  of  the 
engines  and  haul  the  trains  to  the  next  division  point. 
Some  of  the  firemen  get  their  positions  after  working  in 
the  roundhouse  as  wipers,  hostlers,  and  helpers,  but  most 
of  them  on  the  larger  roads  are  either  experienced  men 
from  other  roads  or  inexperienced  men  who  seem  to  have 
•the  proper  qualifications  to  make  good  firemen.  These 
latter  run  for  several  trips  without  pay  as  "  students  "  and 
then  are  regularly  assigned.  It  should  be  understood  that 
for  many  railroad  positions,  including  that  of  fireman,  an 
applicant  must  be  twenty-one  years  of  age  and  able  to  pass 
a  rigid  physical  examination,  with  tests  for  color  blindness, 
proper  vision,  hearing,  etc. 

1^'iring  is  heavy  work.  With  the  big  engines,  the  long 
trains,  and  speed  on  some  roads,  it  becomes  a  back-breaking 
task  to  shovel  enough  coal  into  the  firebox.  Rut  the  hours 
for  the  trip  are  short  compared  to  the  long  rest  periods  be- 
tween, though  at  times  the  run  may  call  for  night  work. 
The  average  wage  of  firemen  is  about  $3  per  day. 

During  the  time  a  man  is  firing  he  is  studying  the  loco- 
motive and  air  brake,  so  that  when  the  time  for  advance- 
ment comes  he  can  pass  the  examination  on  machinery  and 
air  braking.  After  about  three  years  of  firing  he  is  usually 
examined,  and  if  successful  is  in  line  for  a  position  as  engi- 
neer. When  there  is  need  of  a  new  engineer  the  fireman 
oldest  in  the  service  gets  the  place.  If  business  is  good 
many  of  the  older  firemen  are  put  in  charge  of  engines  ; 
when   traffic  falls   off  thev  must  go  back   to   firing   again. 


TRANSPORTATION 


109 


Since  promotion  is  on  the  basis  of  seniority,  the  engineers 
oldest  in  the  service  get  the  best  runs,  driving  the  splen- 
did through  passenger  trains  being  the  positions  of  honor. 
Further  promotions  may  be  to  positions  such  as  traveling 
engineer  and  somewhat  infrequently  to  that  of  master  me- 
chanic.   The  average  wage  of  engineers  is  about  $5  per  day. 


A  switch  yard 

Several  switching  crews  are  here  making  up  trains.    Such  work  keeps  these  men 

regularly  at  the  same  town,  for  taking  trains  to  the  next  division  point  is  a  duty 

assigned  to  trainmen,  not  switchmen 

Transportation  subdepartment.  This  is  in  charge  of  the 
train  master.  He  manages  the  equipment  and  controls  the 
moving  of  freight  and  passengers.  This  necessitates  three 
kinds  of  work. 

I.  JVorJ^  of  yardnioi.  First,  the  trains  must  be  made  up. 
The  yardmaster  and  his  switchman  —  with  the  aid  of  a 
switch  engine,  engineer,  and  fireman  sent  to  them  from 
the  mechanical  department  —  rush  back  and  forth  upon  the 
various  side  tracks,  signaling,  and  shunting  cars   here  and 


no  OCCUPATIONS 

there    until   at   last   the    train   is   ready   for   its   trip.     The 
yardmen  then  go  to  preparing  other  trains. 

2.  IVork  of  traimncn.  Second,  trainmen  —  a  conductor 
and  his  brakemen  —  take  charge  of  the  train  made  up  for 
them  by  the  yardmen  and  run  it  to  the  next  division  point. 
The  work  of  switchmen  and  brakemen,  while  it  is  not  heavy 
like  the  fireman's  task,  is  extremely  hazardous.  The  average 
wage  is  about  $2.90  per  day.  After  several  years  of  ser\-ice 
promotion  may  be  secured  to  yardmaster  and  conductor, 
whose  daily  wages  average  about  $4.20. 

3.  Work  of  telegraphe7's  and  tower  men.  Third,  since  all 
the  trains  must  be  run  in  proper  order  if  wrecks  are  to  be 
avoided,  a  numerous  band  of  telegraphers  and  tower  men 
are  stationed  along  the  line.  They  receive  orders  from  the 
train  dispatcher,  who  has  his  office  at  the  division  point  and 
is  responsible  directly  to  the  train  master.  The  average 
daily  wage  of  the  telegraphers  is  about  $2.50. 

Nature  of  the  work ;  qualifications  demanded.  In  the 
machinery  and  transportation  subdepartments  —  in  which 
young  men  are  likely  to  be  most  interested  —  the  demand 
for  labor  fluctuates  somewhat.  In  the  fall  and  winter 
months,  when  business  is  heavy,  well-qualified  men  have 
no  difficulty  in  securing  employment ;  but  during  the  dull 
season  there  is  a  surplus  of  men  on  the  extra  list  who  do 
not  have  steady  work. 

To  secure  positions  in  these  departments  iiien  are  re- 
quired to  pass  a  mental  and  a  ])hysical  examination.  These 
occupations  recjuire  a  quick,  active  mind  that  can  grasp  a 
situation  instantly  and  use  good  judgment.  All  men  are  re- 
quired to  have  a  common-school  education  as  a  foundation, 
but  the  work  cannot  be  learned  except  by  actual  experience. 

That  railroad  work  is  dangerous  is  pretty  generally  known. 
"  The  occupation  of  switchman  is  considered  the  most  haz- 
ardous in  the  transportation  department  of  railroads  in  the 
United    States,"  writes   the   International    President  of  the 


TRANSPORTATION 


1 1 1 


Switchmen's  Union.  "The  average  Ufe  of  a  switchman  is 
about  nine  years,  when  he  either  is  killed  or  has  become  in- 
capacitated from  injury.  We  pay  on  an  average  of  one  claim 
every  twelve  months  for  every  fifty-three  members  for  death 
or  permanent  total  disability,"    Some  insurance  companies 


"  King  of  the  telegraphers  " 

This  is  the  chief  dispatcher,  upon  whose  orders  depend  in  large  measure  the  avoid- 
ance of  wrecks  and  the  rapid  moving  of  trains  from  station  to  station.    He  is  at  all 
times  in  touch  with  local  telegraphers  along  the  line 


refuse  to  take  the  risk  on  brakemen,  conductors,  firemen, 
and  engineers  at  all,  while  those  that  do  insure  these  men 
charge  a  very  high  rate. 

Other  work  under  the  operating  department.  The  abo\-e 
comprises  the  work  which  is  peculiarly  of  a  railroad  nature. 
The  other  branches  of  railroad  work  are  not  greatly  differ- 
ent from  those  of  commercial  business  in  general.  There 
are  also  in  the  operating  department,  it  may  be  added,  a 


112  OCCUPATIOXS 

number  of  clerical  positions,  such  as  timekeeper  for  the  vari- 
ous gangs,  clerk  in  the  roundhouse  foreman's  office  or  with 
the  master  mechanic,  train  master,  or  division  superintend- 
ent. These  positions  need  not  be  discussed  here,  as  clerkships 
will  be  considered  in  connection  with  a  later  department. 

Unionization  of  the  operating  department.  The  operating 
department  is  thoroughly  unionized.  Wages  are  not  set  by 
individuals  making  terms  with  the  company,  but  by  collec- 
tive bargaining.  Representatives  from  the  union  and  the 
various  railroad  companies  meet  and  arrange  the  wage 
schedule,  hours  of  work,  etc.  So  important  is  the  transpor- 
tation service  that  a  widespread  strike  would  be  a  serious 
calamity,  flence  the  government  often  takes  a  hand  in  set- 
tling disputes.  The  operating  employees  have  pressed  their 
claims  so  well  that  at  the  present  time  few  workmen  are 
better  paid  for  their  services.  This  is  a  point  worth  consid- 
ering by  the  young  man  who  thinks  of  railroading  and  has 
a  mechanical  bent  of  mind. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Ask  vour  local  section  foreman  how  the  track  is  kept  in  good 
condition. 

2.  Have  you  a  roundhouse  in  your  town.''  a  car-repair  yard  .^  a 
switch  engine  and  crew?  a  tf)wer  man?  If  so.  find  out  what  vou  can 
about  their  work. 

3.  If  you  are  acquainted  witli  an  engineer,  learn  what  you  can  of 
his  life-career. 

4.  If  you  are  acquainted  with  a  conductor.  learn  what  vou  can  of 
his  career. 

5.  Call  upon  some  telegraph  operator.  Does  he  do  railroad  or  com- 
mercial work?  How  did  he  learn  telegraphy?  How  long  has  he  been 
in  this  business? 


'I'RAXSl'OKl'A'l'ION 


1 1 


TkakI'Ic  Ukpartmext 

A  railroad  lias  service  to  sell.  It  is  upon  the  persons 
and  commodities  transported  that  its  money  is  made.  Need- 
less to  say,  the  traffic  department,  under  whose  charge  this 
business     is     con- 


TRAFFIC  i)p:rAKTMr:NT 

Traffic   Manager 


Passenger  Traflfic  Mgr. 


Freight  Iraffic  Mgr. 


Gen.  Passenger  Agt. 
As.<;t.  Passenger  Agts. 


Gen.  Baggage  Agt. 


Local  Baggage  Agt. 


l)i.st    Passenger  Agts. 


Gen.  Freight  Agt. 
Asst.  Freight  Agts. 


Freight  Claims  Agt.   . 


■-      nist.  Freight  Agts. 


ducted,  is  a  very 
important  part  of 
the  railroad  organ- 
ization. The  chief 
official,  often  a 
vice  president  of 
the  company,  is 
termed  the  traffic 
manager.  The  va- 
rious subdivisions 
of  the  traffic  de- 
partment are  here 
shown  by  the  dia- 
gram. What  two 
officials  are  directly 
responsible  to  the 
traffic  manager  ? 
The  work  of  each 
will  be  discussed  in 
turn,  and  in  con- 
clusion three  other 
activities  of  the 
traffic  department 
will  be  pointed  out. 

Passenger  subdepartment.  i.  Duties  of  station  agent. 
The  official  of  the  passenger  department  with  whom  }ou 
are  probably  most  familiar  is  the  local  ticket  seller.  In 
small  towns  he  is  always  found  at  the  station,  and  in  ad- 
dition  to  his   duties   as  ticket  agent   he  often    has   charge 


Freiglit  Agts 


Local  Ticket  .'\gtp 


Local  Freight  Agls 


Organization  of  traffic  department 

The  railroad  company  has  transportation  ser\'ices  to  sell, 

and  this  is  the  organization  which  deals  with  shippers 

and  passengers 


114  OCCUPATIONS 

of  the  freight,  express,  baggage,  and  telegraphing  as  well. 
But  in  the  larger  towns  the  station  agent  has  several  assist- 
ants, the  man  who  sells  tickets  perhaps  being  a  clerk.  He 
may  also  have  his  office  uptown  and  carry  on  his  business 
much  like  a  retail  merchant.  The  average  wage  of  these 
38,000  station  agents,  in  small  and  large  towns,  is  about 
^2.20  per  day.  Their  assistants,  a  band  about  four  times 
as  numerous,  receive  approximately  $  i  .90  per  day. 

2,  Advancement.  Promotion  for  the  local-station  agent 
may  be  in  assignment  to  a  better  station  or,  in  fewer  in- 
stances, to  a  district  passenger  agency.  The  district  pas- 
senger agent  advertises  summer  resorts  and  outings  over 
his  road,  arranges  the  trips  and  facilities  for  conventions 
and  other  special  meetings,  and  keeps  his  superior,  the  gen- 
eral passenger  agent,  informed  of  the  traffic  conditions  in 
his  district  and  advised  of  plans  for  increasing  the  volume 
of  business  done. 

To  secure  all  this  information,  however,  often  requires 
much  traveling.  Traffic  must  at  times  be  personally  so- 
licited. Hence,  attached  to  the  office  of  the  district  pas- 
senger agent  and  likewise  to  the  local  passenger  agents 
are  a  corps  of  traveling  passenger  agents  or  solicitors. 
These  men  do  business  in  much  the  same  way  as  any 
traveling  salesmen. 

Freight  subdepartment.  Considerably  more  important  to 
the  company  than  the  transporting  of  passengers  is  the 
hauling  of  freight.  For  every  passenger  riding  on  the 
roads  in  191 2  almost  two  tons  of  freight  were  shipped 
seven  times  as  far.  You  may  have  small  consideration  for 
the  freighter  which  humbly  sidetracks  to  let  your  passenger 
train  go  by,  yet  these  red  box  cars  yield  a  revenue  three 
times  as  great  as  the  luxurious  coaches,  the  difference  in 
191 2  being  $1,295,000,000.  The  positions  in  this  depart- 
ment, as  you  will  notice  on  the  diagram,  are  similar  to 
those  in  the  passenger  department.    But  on  account  of  this 


TRANSPORTATION  115 

enormous  volume  of  business  there  are  excellent  opportu- 
nities for  men  versed  in  the  various  kinds  of  rates,  the 
methods  of  rate  making,  the  forms  used  in  traffic  handling, 
the  methods  of  traffic  development,  traffic  association,  pools, 
and  other  forms  of  railroad  cooperation,  A  young  man 
thoroughly  trained  in  these  subjects  as  they  apply  to  rail- 
roading is  also  well  prepared  to  manage  the  traffic  depart- 
ment of  commercial  and  manufacturing  concerns. 

Advertising.  There  are  a  few  positions  to  be  had  in  the 
advertising  departments  of  railroads.  Here  of  course  is  re- 
quired a  knowledge  of  the  principles  underlying  advertising 
as  well  as  its  practical  application.  But  one  must  also  know 
the  commodity  to  be  sold,  a  knowledge  which  in  this  case 
requires  practical  experience  in  railroad  work.  Hence  it  is 
a  specialized  vocation  with  attractive  openings  for  the  few 
who  are  qualified. 

Mail  service.  This  work,  although  under  the  supei'vision 
of  the  general  passenger  agent,  is  carried  on  under  condi- 
tions determined  by  the  United  States  government.  The 
work  of  the  government  clerks  which  most  nearly  ap- 
proaches railroading  —  that  is,  the  work  of  the  mail  clerks 
—  will  be  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  civil  service. 

Express  service.  The  express  business  is  also  not  pri- 
marily railroad  work,  but  is  carried  on  under  contract  with 
various  express  companies.  In  the  smaller  towns  the  local- 
station  agent  has  charge  of  the  express  business,  for  which 
he  receives  a  commission  in  addition  to  his  regular  salary 
from  the  railroad.  But  in  the  larger  towns  and  cities  this 
service  is  carried  on  as  a  separate  business  with  a  manager, 
assistants,  and  delivery  men.  The  competition  of  the 
United  States  parcel  post  has  somewhat  lessened  the  op- 
portunities for  young  men  entering  the  express  service. 


ii6  OCCUPATIONS 


EXERCISES 


1.  Does  it  cost  more  or  less  to  ship  a  five-hundred-pound  stove  than 
a  five-hundred-pound  buggy?    Explain. 

2.  How  much  per  mile  is  railroad  fare  in  your  state?  Who  decides 
this  rate? 

3.  What  have  the  passenger  and  freight  solicitors  to  sell?  Are  they 
allowed  to  make  special  prices  on  their  commodities  to  individuals? 

4.  Name  the  leading  express  companies.  What  can  you  tell  of  the 
way  their  business  is  carried  on  in  \-our  town  ? 

r'lNAXCIAL   AXD   AcCOUNTIXfi    DEPARTMENT 

The  bu.siness  secured  by  the  trafflc  department  and 
handled  by  the  operating  department  must  be  systemati- 
cally managed.  This  gives  rise  to  a  variety  of  work  which 
is  intrusted  to  the  department  of  accoimting  and  finance. 
Notice  in  the  diagram  on  the  following  page  how  many 
divisions  this  department  has. 

Auditing  division.  The  ordinary  business  man  counts  his 
money  when  he  receiv^es  it.  J^ut  this  simple  task  becomes 
an  elaborate  process  when  instead  of  the  business  man  we 
have  a  railroad  company.  All  tickets  sent  to  the  various 
selling  offices  arc  carefully  recorded,  the  local  ticket  agent's 
report  of  sales  is  checked  up  with  the  original  list,  with 
the  used  tickets  turned  in  by  conductors  at  the  close  of 
each  Iri]:),  and  with  the  unsold  tickets  yet  on  hand.  The 
freight  wa\-bills  and  the  express  and  mail  receipts  are  simi- 
larly checked  over.  In  this  way  careful  record  is  made 
of  all  money  received. 

The  ordinary  business  man  would  also  count  his  money  as 
he  paid  it  out.  Just  as  ticket  and  waybill  are  the  basis  upon 
which  receipts  are  computed,  so  the  voucher  is  the  basis  upon 
which  the  disbursements  are  made.  No  money  is  paid  for 
materials  or  wages  unless  authorized  by  means  of  this  voucher, 
which  bears  the  signature  of  some  responsible  official. 


TRANSPORTATION 


117 


FINANCIAL  AND  ACCOUNTING 

Vice-President 


Legal 

General  Counsel 


General  Solicitor 


Asst.  General  Solicitor 


Cliief  Claim  Agent 


District  Solicitor 


Financial  Treasurer        — ' 


Auditing 
Comptroller 


Auditor  Freight  Receipts 


Auditor  Passenger 
Receipts 


•-     Chief  Traffic  Auditor 


Traveling  Auditors 


The  head  of  the  auditing  division  is  called  the  comp- 
troller. This  officer  has  three  leading  subordinates  :  the 
auditor  of  passenger  receipts,  the  auditor  of  freight  receipts, 
and  the  auditor 
of  disbursements. 
Under  them  are  a 
number  of  travel- 
ing auditors  whose 
duty  it  is  to  check 
over  the  books  of 
the  local  agents 
along  the  line.  But 
to  do  the  detailed 
work  at  the  cen- 
tral offices  a  corps 
of  clerks  is  needed, 
while  to  handle 
these  vast  sums, 
and  from  them 
prepare  intelligent 
statements  for  the 
chief  officials  of 
the  road  and  for 
the  various  reports 
published  by  the 
state  and  national 
governments,  re- 
quires numerous 
trained  account- 
ants and  statisti- 
cians. 

Financial   divi- 
sion.   Although  a 
record  of  receipts  and  expenditures  is  kept  by  the  auditing 
division,  the  money  itself  is  in  charge  of  the  financial  division. 


Secretary's  Dept. 


Cashier 


Asst.  Secretary 


Chief  Paymaster 


Assistants  to  Secretary 


Paymasters 


Transfer  Clerks 


Asst.  Transfer  Clerks 


Financial  and  accounting  department 

The  work  done  in  these  departments  of  a  railroad  does 

not  differ  a  great  deal  from  the  financial  and  accounting 

work  of  commercial  concerns  in  general 


Ii8 


OCCUPAI'iOXS 


This  is  really  the  bankin<^  part  of  railroad  management 
whose  head  is  the  treasurer.  His  subordinates  are  termed 
cashiers,  and  under  them  are  the  officials  that  the  railroad 
men  know  best,  the  paymasters. 

Legal  division.    There  are  many  contracts  requiring  legal 
skill  ;    and   railroads,    like   other  great  business   enterprises 


r<    7 


-t         'i!„-. 


^,\:<:>f^i  i'T-^^^.-y^-'jiP^ 


If 


A  railroad  headquarters 

In  addition  to  its  use  as  a  passenger  station,  this  magnificent  building  houses  the 
financial,  traffic,  and  auditing  departments 

find  certain  legal  controversies  unavoidable.  From  the  dia- 
gram find  out  who  is  head  of  this  di\ision.  What  are  his 
subordinates  called  ? 

Secretarial  division.  A  mass  of  correspondence  is  carried 
on  between  the  railroad  company  and  outside  organizations 
and  individuals,  and  also  within  the  company  itself.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  correspondence  there  are  also  many  records  to  file 
and  preserve.  This  work  is  in  charge  of  a  secretary,  who  is 
assisted  by  a  great  many  clerks,  stenographers,  and  typewriters. 

Altogether  there  are  very  nearly  80,000  clerks  employed 
in  railroad  work,  principallv  in  the  two  departments  last  dis- 
cussed, whose  average  salary  is  about  $2. 50  per  day. 


TRANSPORIWriON  II9 

AUXILIAKV    SUBDEPARTMENTS 

There  are  yet  other  enterprises  in  which  a  railroad  en- 
gages and  which  consequently  must  receive  attention  some- 
where in  its  organization.  But  since  these  are  common  to 
many  other  kinds  of  business,  we  shall  here  merely  touch 
upon  the  most  important  of  them. 

Purchasing  subdepartment.  Railroads  are  learning  the 
worth  of  expert  bu)ing.  Each  department  formerly  pur- 
chased its  own  supplies,  but  this  plan  has  now  been  largely 
superseded  by  the  more  economical  one  of  employing  a 
purchasing  agent.  He  has  several  assistants,  the  number 
depending  upon  the  volume  of  business,  and  under  them  he 
has  also  the  storekeeper.  Unlike  most  merchants  the  rail- 
road storekeepers  do  not  sell  anything,  but  distribute  supplies 
upon  presentation  of  the  proper  requisitions. 

Subdepartments  in  charge  of  insurance,  real  estate,  and 
pensions.  All  companies  own  some  real  estate  and  there 
is  much  buying  and  selling  of  property,  especially  with 
the  Western  companies,  which  received  large  land  grants. 
Two  other  lines  of  activity  sometimes  in  charge  of  separate 
divisions  are  insurance  and  pensions.  Naturally,  however, 
the  transactions  in  real  estate  and  the  insuring  and  pension- 
ing of  individuals  are  not  general  but  are  strictly  limited, 
the  former  to  railroad  property  and  the  latter  to  railroad 
employees. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Like  what  corresponding  branch  of  commercial  business  is  each 
of  the  above  divisions  of  railroad  work .'' 

2.  If  you  are  personally  acquainted  with  anyone  employed  in  any 
of  these  divisions  of  railroading,  what  can  you  tell  of  his  position .'' 


I20  OCCUPATIONS 

How    TO    ENTER    StEAM    RAILROADING 

It  is  evident  that  railroading  is  a  broad  field  and  hence 
offers  a  wide  range  of  positions.  Directing"  a  shovel  gang, 
running  a  locomotive,  checking  up  waybills,  defending  a 
damage  suit,  all  have  a  place  in  railroad  work.  It  is  very 
likely  that  a  young  man  inclined  toward  railroad  service  can 
find  in  it  some  position  both  congenial  and  worth  while. 

Railroads,  moreover,  are  highly  organized.  The  nature 
of  their  business  requires  a  somewhat  complex  organization 
with  men  held  closely  responsible.  And  the  way  to  learn 
how  to  fill  an  important  position,  the  railroad  companies 
believe,  is  to  fill  a  minor  one  of  the  same  or  similar  kind. 
This  means  that  the  system  of  promotion  characterizes  rail- 
roads—  that  men  "work  up,"  and  that  emphasis  is  laid 
upon  seniority.  It  means,  too,  looking  at  the  matter  from 
an  individual  standpoint  that  whatever  the  qualifications  of 
a  young  man  he  will  probably  have  to  begin  in  what  may 
appear  to  him  a  very  humble  position. 

The  way  of  actual  experience.  Accordingly,  the  primary 
way  of  becoming  fitted  for  railroad  work  is  through  actual 
experience.  But  this  way  is  long  and  it  has  caused  many 
a  bright  young  man  to  become  a  mere  cog  in  the  machine. 
As  a  railroad  expert  writes  to  us,  ""  I  have  said  very  little 
about  these  openings,  as  I  should  hate  to  advise  any  young 
man  to  bury  himself  in  the  accounting  department  of  a  rail- 
road. Of  course  there  is  opportunity  there  the  same  as 
anywhere  else ;  in  fact,  there  is  big  opportunity  for  the 
right  kind  of  man.  But  it  is  mighty  mechanical,  and  unless 
a  boy  has  all  kinds  of  grit  and  perseverance  he  is  likely  to 
become  an  old  man  and  still  find  himself  a  clerk." 

The  apprenticeship  system.  The  second  method  of  se- 
curing training  is  through  the  apprenticeship  system.  The 
young  man  agrees  to  work  for  a  certain  number  of  years 
for   less   wages   than    he    might    otherwise   earn,    and    the 


TRANSPORTATION  121 

employer  in  return  provides  him  special  opportunities  to 
learn  the  trade.  Appi'enticeship  on  railroads  at  the  present 
time  is  generally  limited  to  the  mechanical  department,  be- 
cause this  work  is  specialized  and  lends  itself  best  to  such 
a  method  of  learning. 

Courses  of  instruction.  The  third  method  is  the  school, 
a  place  where  definite  instruction  is  given.  Sometimes  this 
instruction  is  offered  by  correspondence,  the  school  hav- 
ing no  particular  connection  with  the  railroad  company. 
At  other  times  the  work  is  done  in  residence  schools,  in 
the  various  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations,  and  in 
certain  high  schools,  as  at  Fitchburg  (Massachusetts)  and 
Altoona  (Pennsylvania). 

Educational  advantages  offered  by  railroad  companies. 
The  railroad  companies  themselves  are  developing  educa- 
tional work.  The  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company,  for 
instance,  has  an  "  educational  bureau  "  whose  objects  are 
as  follows  : 

First  Object.  Assisting  employees  to  assume  greater  responsibilities. 
The  bureau  will  offer  any  employee  desiring  to  qualify  himself  to  assume 
greater  responsibilities  a  course  of  reading  and  study  along  the  line 
which  he  may  indicate. 

Second  Object.  Increasing  the  knowledge  and  efficiency  of  em- 
ployees. It  is  the  purpose  of  this  bureau  to  provide  a  means  whereby 
any  employee  desiring  information  on  any  particular  question  or  problem 
met  with  from  day  to  day  can  send  this  question  to  the  bureau  for  an 
answer.  No  limit  is  set  on  the  number  of  questions  that  may  be  asked, 
and  an  employee  may  ask  for  information  every  day,  if  he  so  desires. 

TJiird  Object.  Preparing  prospective  employees  for  the  service.  It 
is  the  purpose  of  this  bureau  to  assist  in  supplying  men  of  good  reputa- 
tion and  character  for  vacancies  and,  where  possible,  to  train  these  men 
as  far  as  practicable  in  the  duties  of  their  prospective  work  before  their 
employment. 

Improved  conditions  in  railroad  employ.  From  what  has 
been  said  it  becomes  evident  that  entering  the  railroad 
employ  and  succeeding  in  it  as  a  life-career  is  a  problem 


122 


OCCUPATIONS 


now  being  vigorousl}-  attacked  from  several  quarters.  Be- 
cause of  the  resulting  advantages  railroad  service  will  gradu- 
ally become  more  attractive  to  young  men  of  training  and 
perseverance.  As  is  pointed  out  by  a  former  official  of  the 
Lehigh  Valley  Railroad,  "  The  time  will  come  when  railroad 

employ  for  cirrj'  man 
in  the  service  will 
not  mean  drudgery, 
nor  sinecure,  nor  ac- 
cidental opportunity, 
but  an  enlightened, 
stimulating,  highly 
efficient  service  of 
the  highest  earning 
power,  least  uncer- 
tainty from  accidental 
causes,  largest  free- 
dom for  individual 
initiative,  entire  self- 
respect,  and  thor- 
oughly democratic 
spirit." 

Qualifications.  As 
to  the  qualities  which 
will  bring  success  in 
railroad  work,  per- 
haps it  may  be  well 
to      consider      what 


Conductor  giving  engineer  the  "  high-ball  " 

This  conductor  came  up  from  the  ranks  and,  as  the 
number  of  braids  on  his  left  sleeve  indicates,  has 
been  in  the  service  over  a  quarter  of  a  century. 
The  high  standard  required  in  railroad  work  is  shown 
by  the  fact  that  this  train,  making  a  dailv  looo-mile 
run,  was  on  time  355  times  out  of  a  possible  365 


President  Howard  Elliott  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven  and 
Hartford  Railroad  Company  said  recently  :  "  The  only  rule 
to  success  that  I  know  of  is  hard  work,  honesty,  sincerity, 
good  character,  and  good  habits.  These  are  platitudes,  but 
they  are  the  principles  of  success.  Whatever  you  do,  do  as 
well  as  you  can,  and  do  a  little  more  than  is  expected  of  you 
if  possible." 


TRANSPORTATION  123 

EXERCISES 

1.  Which  phase  of  transportation  appeals  to  you  most  favorably? 
Explain  why  this  is  so. 

2.  Tell  how  you  can  enter  this  department. 

3.  What  future  do  you  believe  this  particular  position  offers  you.' 
How  might  you  secure  promotion  in  this  work.'' 

ELECTRIC  RAILROADING 

Growth  and  importance  of  electric  railways.    You  may 

be  surprised  to  learn  that  electric  railways  carry  almost  ten 
times  as  many  passengers  as  do  steam  railways.  The  amount 
received  from  each  passenger  is  only  a  few  cents,  of  course, 
yet  electric  railways  earn  in  this  way  almost  two  thirds  the 
income  received  from  passenger  traffic  on  steam  cars.  While 
the  growth  of  cities  is  accompanied  by  a  steady  increase  in 
the  number  of  surface,  elevated,  and  subway  lines,  one  of  the 
interesting  developments  of  mral  life  is  the  buijding  of  inter- 
urban  railways.  In  five  and  a  half  years,  ending  with  1907, 
the  total  mileage  increase  of  electric  railways  was  53  per 
cent.  But  the  increase  of  interurban  lines  was  more  rapid 
than  that  of  city  lines.  Hence  the  young  man  who  thinks 
of  railroading  as  a  career  should  by  no  means  neglect  con- 
sidering interurban  lines  as  well  as  city  car  systems. 

Positions  available.  The  various  departments  and  positions 
shown  in  the  diagrams  of  the  steam  railroad  on  pages  105, 
1-13,  1 17,  are,  with  certain  modifications,  to  be  found  in  elec- 
tric railroads.  The  average  electric  line  has  fewer  employees 
and  far  less  mileage  than  the  average  railroad,  so  its  organiza- 
tion does  not  require  the  services  of  so  many  specialists. 
But  one  particular  specialist  it  needs  even  more  than  the 
steam  railroad  needs  a  specialist,  and  this  man  is  the  elec- 
trician. His  profession  is  treated  in  a  later  chapter,  but  at 
this  point  it  is  well  to  emphasize  that  the  electric  transpor- 
tation companies  have  much  to  offer  him. 


124  OCCUPATIONS 

Pay  and  promotion  of  conductors  and  motormen.  Traffic 
is  seasonal,  being  as  a  usual  thing  much  heavier  in  the 
summer.  To  prepare  for  this  increased  business  new  men 
are  employed  during  the  spring.  When  first  employed,  a 
man  serves  on  the  extra  list  until  vacancies  above  him, 
caused  either  by  resignations  or  increased  traffic,  leave  him 
a  regular  run.  With  the  slackening  of  traffic  in  the  autumn, 
the  new  or  less  desirable  men  are  weeded  out. 

The  following  rates  of  pay  for  conductors  and  motormen 
were  in  force  July  4,  19 13,  on  the  New  York  City  surface 
lines  : 

RATES  OF  PAY 

First  year 24  cents  per  hour 

Second  year 24  cents  per  hour 

Third  year 25  cents  per  hour 

Fourth  year 26  cents  per  hour 

Fifth  year 26  cents  per  hour 

Sixth  year 27  cents  per  hour 

After  ten  years 28  cents  per  hour 

By  strict  observance  of  operating  rules  and  regulations, 
employees  may  earn  the  rate  of  the  next  higher  grade  one 
year  earlier  than  the  time  specified  in  the  preceding  table, 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  opportunities  for  electric  railway  service  does  your  com- 
munity afford  ? 

2.  What  are  some  of  the  advantages  of  the  motorman's  position  ? 
the  disadvantages  ?  What  are  some  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages 
of  the  conductor's  work  ? 


TRANSPORTATION  125 

INLAND  AND   OCEAN   NAVIGATION 

You  may  live  near  the  Great  Lakes,  on  some  navigable 
river,  or  in  some  great  seaport.  How  does  water  navigation 
appeal  to  you  ?  What  opportunities  are  there  in  it  for  a  life- 
career  ?  Upon  the  inland  waterways  of  the  United  States  in 
1906  the  total  traffic  amounted  to  over  100,000,000  tons. 
Most  of  this  was  upon  the  Great  Lakes  and  the  St.  Law- 
rence, but  the  Mississippi,  the  Ohio,  and  the  Hudson  also 
have  a  notable  volume  of  traffic.  In  addition,  our  im- 
mense foreign  trade  means  important  ocean  traffic ;  a  greater 
part  of  this,  however,  is  under  control  of  foreign  shipping 
companies. 

The  general  organization  and  operation  of  inland  and 
ocean  navigation  is  so  similar  to  land  transportation  that  it 
need  not  here  be  further  presented. 


READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Carter,  Charles  F.     When  Railroads  were  New.    Henry  Holt  and 

Company,  New  York,  1909.    $2.00. 
Dewsnup,  E.  R.,  editor.    Railway  Organization  and  Working.    The 

University  of  Chicago  Press,  Chicago,  1906.    $2.00. 
Eaton,  J.  S.    Education  for  Efficiency  in  Railroad  Service.    United 

States  Department  of  Education,  Washington.    Bulletin  No.  420. 

Free. 
Electric    Railway   Transportation.    Annals    of   American    Academy   of 

Political  and  Social  Science,  Philadelphia,  191 1.    $1.00. 
JOHNSOX,  EM(mY  R.    Ocean  and  Inland  Transportation.    D.  Applcton 

and  Company,  New  York,  1905.    $1.50. 
McPherson,  Logan  G.    Working  of  the  Railroads.    Henry  Holt  and 

Company,  New  York,  1907.    $1.50. 
Ripley,  W.  Z.    Railway  Problems  (Revised  Edition).    Ginn  and  Com- 
pany, Boston.    $2.50. 
Spearman,  Frank  H.    Strategy  of  Great  Railroads.    Charles  Scrib- 

ner's  Sons,  New  York,  1908.    #1.50. 


126  OCCUPATIONS 

Periodicals 

Electric  Traction.  Monthly.  Kenfield-Davis  Publishing  Company. 
Chicago.    %  1 .00  per  year. 

Railway  Electrical  Engineer.  Monthly.  W'ray  Publishing  Company. 
Chicago.    $1.00  per  year. 

Railway  Journal.    Monthly.    Chicago.    $1.00  per  year. 

Telegraph  and  Telephone  Age.  Semimonthly.  J.  B.  Taltanall,  New- 
York.    $2.00. 

Unions 

Brotherhood  of  Locomotive  Engineers.    Reports.    Cleveland,  Ohio. 
Brotherhood  of  Locomotive  Firemen  and  Enginemen.    Reports.    Peoria, 

111. 
Brotherhood  of  Railroad  Trainmen.-    Reports.    Cleveland,  Ohio. 
Order  of  Railway  Conductors.    Reports.    Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa. 


CHAPTER  VII 

CIVIL  SERVICE 

To  the  victors  belong  the  spoils.  —  William  L.  Marcy,  in  the  United 

States  Senate,  1832 

A  democratic  republic  such  as  ours  represents  the  most  gigantic  of  all 
possible  social  experiments,  the  one  fraught  with  greatest  possibilities  alike 
for  good  and  for  evil.  —  Theodore  Roosevelt  at  the  Sorbonne.  1910 

Andrew  Jackson  swept  out  of  office  the  men  who  had 
served  Adams,  and  filled  their  positions  with  political 
adherents.  Term  after  term  that  pleasant-sounding  but 
elusive  phrase  "  rotation  in  office,"  joined  with  the  foolish 
belief  that  all  men  are  equally  competent  to  fill  any  govern- 
ment position,  seduced  the  American  public.  Meanwhile 
machine  bosses  chuckled  and  the  heads  of  competent  pub- 
lic servants,  though  poor  politicians,  regularly  fell  into  the 
spoils  basket.  And  the  public  paid  the  bill  in  the  reduced 
efficiency  of  service. 

Popular  demand  for  civil  service.  But  it  has  gradually 
dawned  upon  people  that  after  all  the  government  is  pretty 
much  like  a  big  business  corporation.  So  much  revenue  is 
raised,  so  much  service  is  rendered.  When,  as  in  the  year 
19 1 3,  Congress  appropriates  $617,382,178  for  one  year's 
governmental  expense,  the  American  voter  begins  to  consider 
seriously  just  how  this  money  is  spent.  And  the  American 
people,  whether  acting  in  their  federal,  state,  or  municipal 
capacity,  are  becoming  actively  opposed  to  having  a  crooked 
politician  present  his  friends  with  fat  jobs  —  and  then  send 
the  bill  to  the  pjiblic.  This  awakening  means  the  growth  in 
importance  of  civil  service. 

127 


128 


OCCUPATIONS 


Growth  of  civil  service.  The  civil-service  law  was  passed 
in  January,  1883,  its  general  object  being  "to  regulate  and 
improve  the  Civil  Service  of  the  United  States."  Its  means 
for  accomplishing  this  were  three  in  number :  First,  compe- 
tent employees  for  the  government  were  to  be  secured  by  ex- 
amination and  appointment ;  second,  removals  could  not  be 
made  for  political  reasons  ;  third,  advancement,  like  appoint- 
ment and  continuance  in  office,  was  removed  from  political 
domination  by  being  made  dependent  on  fitness  alone. 

Such  a  plan  for  securing  government  employees  was 
considered  revolutionary,  and  was  for  many  years  looked 
upon  with  suspicion.  But  as  the  system  has  continued  to 
work  successfully,  it  has  grown  steadily  in  favor.  In  June, 
191 2,  there  were  395,000  persons  employed  in  the  United 
States  civil  service;  and  of  these,  236,000  held  positions 
subject  to  competitive  examination. 

Number  of  federal  positions.  The  following  table  lists  a 
few  only  of  the  many  positions  open  to  young  people  who 
are  prepared.  It  also  indicates  the  number  of  persons  ex- 
amined, passed,  and  appointed,  and  their  salaries,  for  the 
year  ending  June  30,  1912.^ 


Examination 

KXAM- 
INED 

Passed 

Appointed 

Salaries  at  which  appointed 

Minimum 

Maximum 

Clerk  (departmental)     . 

Draftsman 

Forest  assistant   .... 
Railway  mail  clerk     .    . 
Scientific  assistant .    .    . 

Stenographer   

Stenographer  and  type- 
writer   

Subclerical 

Tvpi-'wiitcT 

\-.                   ,,      

1806 

377 

159 
11,266 

351 
879 

1525 
1323 
I  I  70 

392 

510 

92 

91 

3034 

1099 
744 
185 

•37 
20 

59 

770 

19 

33 

417 
463 
307 
109 

$660 
900 

1200 
900 
600 
700 

480 

300 

480 

1200 

$1000 
1500 
1200 
900 
1620 
1080 

1200 

720 
1200 
1400 

1  I'rom  Section  278,  "  Manual  of  F.xaminations,"  1913. 


CIVIL  SERVICE  129 

State  positions.  Though  the  federal  government  is 
usually  thought  of  when  civil  service  is  mentioned,  the 
state  governments  are  also  offering  more  and  more  oppor- 
tunities under  conditions  similar  to  those  of  the  United 
States.  In  New  York  State,  for  example,  there  are  over 
17,000  positions  under  the  civil  service.  Among  these 
may  be  mentioned  the  positions  of  accountant,  bookkeeper, 
court  attendant,  clerk,  copyist,  engineer,  examiner,  fireman, 
game  protector,  prison  guard,  inspector,  stenographer,  store- 
keeper, and  superintendent.  The  state  of  Illinois  in  191 1 
examined  2896  applicants,  of  whom  2262  passed  and 
1474  were  appointed.  Illinois  also  has  a  long  list  of 
positions  from  which  to  choose. 

Municipal  positions.  A  similar  movement  for  civil- 
service  reform  is  found  in  cities.  As  an  illustration  of  what 
opportunities  municipalities  have  to  offer,  the  New  York 
Municipal  Civil  Service  Commission  conducts  examinations 
for  positions  in  laboratories,  hospitals,  and  asylums,  clerical 
service,  engineering,  inspection,  legal  work,  attendance  ser- 
vice, police,  prison,  and  fire  departments,  medicine,  street 
cleaning,  and  ferry  service. 

Desirability  of  the  different  positions.  If  you  do  not 
know  whether  or  not  the  civil  service  offers  a  position 
which  suits  you,  or  which  of  several  positions  is  the  most 
desirable,  write  to  the  United  States  Civil  Service  Com- 
mission at  Washington  for  their  "Manual  of  Examinations," 
to  your  state  Civil  Service  Commission  at  the  Capitol  for 
their  "  Manual  of  Examinations,"  and  to  the  Civil  Service 
Commission  in  your  city  for  a  copy  of  their  manual.  Look 
these  through  carefully,  and  you  will  discover  in  detail  the 
scope  of  civil-service  work.  Indeed,  it  would  seem  that 
among  so  many  different  positions  open,  it  should  not  be 
difficult  to  select  one  worthy  of  your  serious  consideration. 


ISO  OCCUPATIOxNS 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  objections  do  you  see  to  the  "  spoils  system  "  ? 

2.  Has  your  state  a  ci\il-service  commission .'  What  positions  do 
they  have  to  fill  ? 

3.  Has  your  city  a  civil-service  commission?  If  not,  ask  some  police- 
man, fireman,  or  clerk  how  city  positions  are  secured. 

4.  How  can  you  find  out  whether  a  position  which  interests  you  is 
open  for  application  in  the  civil  service? 

Securing  a  position.  If  you  look  through  the  manuals 
and  select  a  position  which  you  would  like  very  much,  the 
question  arises,  How  can  I  secure  it  ?  There  is  no  need  to 
look  around  for  some  powerful  politicians  to  help  you.  In 
this  case  they  are  powerless.  The  proper  way  to  go  about 
securing  a  position  may  be  illustrated  by  taking  a  concrete 
case,  as  follows  : 

1.  Application.  You  are  a  stenographer  and  typewriter, 
let  us  sav,  and  you  wish  to  enter  the  federal  service.  You 
note  in  the  Manual  that  applicants  for  a  position  similar  to 
vour  present  one  are  to  be  examined  in  a  neighboring  city  on 
a  certain  date.  Possibly  you  may  have  gained  this  informa- 
tion from  a  printed  notice  in  the  post  office,  since  notices  of 
vacancies  and  examinations  iii  the  civil  service  are  always 
posted  in  public  buildings.  At  any  rate,  you  write  to  the  Civil 
Service  Commission  at  W^ashington,  requesting  an  applica- 
tion blank.  When  this  blank  is  received,  fill  it  out  with 
care,  since  it  must  be  complete  and  just  right,  or  you  may 
be  so  delayed  in  correcting  it  that  you  will  be  obliged  to 
wait  for  a  later  examination.  A  card  will  then  be  sent  you 
granting  permission  to  take  the  examination  at  the  place  and 
date  specified. 

2.  Preparation.  Meanwhile  you  should  be  busily  pre- 
paring to  pass  this  examination  successfully.  You  turn  to 
Stenographers  and  Typewriters  Examination  in  the  index 
of  the  "Manual   of   P-xaminations  "  and,  by  consulting  the 


CIVIL  SERVICE  131 

pages  referred  to,  you  note  that  the  first  subject  recjuired 
of  applicants  is  stenography  dictation.  You  find  there  a  dis- 
cussion of  what  this  examination  is  like  and  a  dictation 
similar  to  that  which  later  you  will  be  called  upon  to  take. 
You  note  that  the  second  requirement  is  correctness  in 
copying  and  spacing ;  the  third,  making  a  good  copy  from 
a  rough  draft ;  the  fourth,  making  a  good  copy  from  a 
plain  copy  ;  the  fifth,  the  time  you  take  in  doing  this  type- 
writing;  the  sixth,  showing  proficiency  in  other  subjects. 
In  turning  to  the  section  to  which  reference  is  made,  you 
see  that  you  will  be  examined  also  in  spelling,  arithmetic, 
penmanship,  geography,  and  the  civil  government  of  the 
United  States.  In  making  preparation  for  this  examination 
you  may  be  aided  somewhat  by  knowing  how  the  papers 
are  marked.  In  the  Manual  you  will  find  sections  which 
explain  how  this  is  done.  With  these  points  of  information 
as  a  guide,  make  your  preparation.  And  on  the  date  set  for 
the  examination  appear  in  good  physical  condition  and  do 
your  best. 

Chances  for  appointment,  i.  A  JiigJi  examination  mark. 
If  your  papers  when  graded  average  less  than  70  per  cent, 
your  application  is  rejected  and  reexamination  is  your  only 
hope.  But  securing  a  grade  of  70  per  cent  or  over  places 
you  on  what  is  known  as  the  eligible  list,  and  when  a 
vacancy  for  a  stenographer  and  typewriter  occurs,  the  three 
names  highest  on  this  list  are  submitted  to  the  appointing 
officer.  He  selects  the  person  in  his  estimation  best  fitted, 
and  the  other  two  names  are  returned  to  the  register  to 
await  the  next  appointment.  The  main  thing,  therefore,  is 
a  high  examination  mark. 

2.  The  mnnbcr  of  applicants  from  your  state.  There  are 
additional  factors  which  may  increase  your  chance  of  ap- 
pointment. One  is  whether  or  not  there  are  many  from 
your  own  state  seeking  positions.  Each  state  has  a  certain 
share   of    appointments    apportioned   to    it.     Persons    from 


132  OCCUPATIONS 

extreme  Southern  or  Western  states  have  better  chances, 
for  often  these  states  —  being  so  far  from  Washington  that 
young  people  do  not  seek  work  at  that  distance  —  do  not 
furnish  enough  ehgibles  to  secure  their  share  of  appoint- 
ments. On  the  other  hand,  if  you  live  in  Maryland  or 
Delaware  and  want  a  position  in  Washington  your  chances 
are  not  so  good. 

3.  Willingness  to  work  in  distant  sections.  Another  fac- 
tor affecting  your  chance  of  appointment  is  whether  you 
are  willing  to  work  in  distant  sections.  A  stenographer  and 
typewriter  who  would  accept  an  appointment  in  Washing- 
ton, on  the  Isthmus  of  Panama,  or  in  the  Philippines  would 
be  more  likely  to  be  placed  than  one  who  would  go  only  to 
Washington. 

4.  Qualifying  also  for  state  and  municipal  positions. 
Another  thing  you  can  do,  in  case  you  desire  an  appoint- 
ment at  the  very  earliest  possible  time,  is  to  take  similar 
examinations  for  state  and  municipal  civil  service.  Then 
whichever  position  was  first  tendered  could  be  accepted. 
Still  another  plan  is  to  qualify  for  more  than  one  position. 
If  you  jjass  the  stenography  and  typewriting  examination, 
you  thus  become  eligible  for  an  appointment  as  stenographer 
or  as  typewriter.  Or  you  can  take  a  second  examination  for 
field  service,  and  thus  widen  your  chances  of  appointment. 

5.  Qualifying  for  more  than  one  kind  of  position.  All 
these  plans  apply  even  if  you  have  only  one  type  of  qualifi- 
cations, such  as  those  required  for  stenograjjhy  and  type- 
writing. But  perhaps  you  are  equally  well  prepared  for  two 
different  positions.  Or  you  may  be  undecided  as  to  which 
position  to  select  for  preparation  in  the  examinations.  In 
this  case  the  results  shown  by  the  commissioners  in  their 
manual  will  be  helpful  in  pointing  out  in  which  position  pros- 
pects are  best.  Suppose,  for  instance,  you  live  in  Illinois 
and  are  interested  equally  in  entering  the  Indian  service  as 
teacher  or  the  departmental  service  as  clerk.    The  manual 


CIVIL  SERVICE 


133 


for  191 3  shows  that  84  took  the  examination  for  teacher, 
57  passed,  and  29  were  appointed,  while  the  numbers  for 
departmental  clerk  were  i8o6  taking  the  examination,  510 
passed,  and  37  appointed,  so  that  this  position  is  much  less 
encouraging  in  its  prospects  of  appointment. 

Distribution  of  national  civil-service  positions.  The 
following  table,  which  refers  to  male  employees  only,  will 
indicate  the  various  departments  of  civil-service  work,  the 
percentage  employed  in  each,  and  the  place  of  employment.^ 


Per  Cent  of 
Distribution 

Location  of  Position 

Character  of  Work 

District  of 
Columbia 

Elsewhere 

Executive 

1.2 

5-5 
67.2 

4.9 
18.0 

3-2 

Per  Cent 

354 

22.8 

6.1 

33-9 

16.5 

1.8 

10.5 

Per  Cent 
64.6 
77.2 

93-9 
66.1 

Professional,  technical,  scientific   .     . 

Clerical . 

Mechanical 

Subclerical  and  manual  labor     .     .     . 
Miscellaneous 

83-5 
98.2 

89-5 

All  classes 

In  which  division  are  most  positions  to  be  had }  If  you 
did  not  specify  the  location,  would  you  be  likely  to  be  em- 
ployed in  Washington,  or  elsewhere }  What  per  cent  of 
the  professional,  technical,  and  scientific  employees  are 
stationed  outside  of  Washington }  What  per  cent  do  they 
form  of  the  total  number  of  employees .''  What  per  cent  of 
the  entire  civil-service  force  is  stationed  in  Washington  .-* 

The  foregoing  explanations  indicate  that  there  is  consid- 
erable red  tape  in  connection  with  securing  a  civil-servace 
position,  and  that  it  requires  some  little  skill  to  plan  the 
whole  matter  and,  especially,  to  get  the  high  examina- 
tion mark.  For  this  reason  you  will  find  it  well  to  study 
with    care   the    "  Manual   of    Examinations "   and    to    read 

1  Compiled  from  Tables  ii  and  12,  Census  Bulletin  g4,  1907,  pp.  22-23. 


134  OCCUPATIONS 

as  many  as  possible  of  the  references  listed  at  the  end 
of  this  chapter.  If  your  preparation  has  been  poor  or  was 
made  some  time  ago,  it  may  be  advisable  to  attend  for  a 
short  time  some  civil-service  school  or  take  courses  from 
some  correspondence  school.  These  schools  have  no  con- 
nection whatever  with  any  civil-service  commission,  —  be 
suspicious  of  one  that  makes  such  claims,  —  but  they  follow 
closely  the  past  examinations  and  appointments  and  can  do 
much  to  prepare  you  well.  The  safest  plan  in  selecting  a 
good  school  is  to  find  out  from  some  person  who  has  already 
profited  by  its  coaching,  or  to  write  to  several  of  these 
schools,  and  decide  upon  the  one  which  is  able  to  furnish 
the  most  solid  proof  of  its  reliability.  Do  not  waste  time 
and  effort  on  a  poor  one,  no  matter  how  inexpensive  its 
instruction  may  be. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Which  of  the  civil-service  positions  listed  interests  you  most? 

2.  In  what  subjects  does  it  require  an  examination? 

3.  In  what  specific  ways  can  you  prepare  for  this  examination? 

4.  How  many  took  the  examination  last  year?  How  many  passed? 
What  number  were  appointed  ? 

WHAT  CIVIL-SERVICE  WORK  IS  LIKE 

Once  having  secured  a  federal  position,  you  begin  work 
for  "  Uncle  Sam,"  who  you  will  find  aims  to  be  a  good  em- 
ployer. He  does  not  always  succeed  in  this,  of  course,  else 
everybody  would  be  seeking  civil-service  positions.  So,  let 
us  consider  a  few  of  the  pros  and  cons  of  government  work. 

Stability  of  employment.  Government  work  goes  on 
summer  and  winter ;  there  are  no  shutdowns  for  repairs, 
no  holiday  rushes.  Only  in  a  few  special  cases,  as  the  de- 
cennial census  taking,  are  fluctuations  to  be  found.  Nor 
are  the  civil-service  employees  discharged  without  cause  at 


CIVIL  SERVICE  135 

the  whim  of  some  foreman  or  factory  owner.  Hence  we 
conclude  that  this  work  is  regular. 

Hours  of  work  and  absences.  The  day's  work  is  rela- 
tively short,  too,  seven  hours  only  being  required.  Employees 
may  be  called  upon  to  perform  extra  ser\'ices  in  times  of 
special  need,  though  this  is  seldom  required  of  them. 
Thirty  days'  leave  of  absence  per  year  with  pay  is  usually 
granted.  This  vacation  time  may  be  taken  a  day  or  two  at  a 
time  or  consecutively,  and  in  case  of  sickness  leave  with  pay 
may  be  extended  thirty  days  more.  These  three  things  make 
the  hours  of  work  and  the  absences  very  favorable  indeed. 

Salary.  By  comparing  the  list  of  salaries  given  in  the 
Manual  with  those  offered  by  commercial  concerns,  it  will 
be  seen  that  government  work  clearly  has  the  advantage. 
Clerks  entering  on  salaries  of  from  $660  to  $1000  are 
better  paid  than  similarly  qualified  clerks  in  dr}'-goods 
stores  or  banks.  The  minor  executive  positions,  to  take  an- 
other example,  such  as  chief  clerk,  office  manager,  inspector, 
etc.,  bring  salaries  from  $1800  to  $3000,  several  hundred 
more  than  may  be  expected  in  wholesale  houses  or  factories. 

Advancement.  Government  work  is  on  a  carefully  graded 
advancement  basis,  and  higher  positions  are  usually  filled 
from  the  ranks  by  promotion.  But  here  we  find  no  big 
prizes  to  tantalize  men,  none  such  as  fall  to  the  preemi- 
nently successful  lawyer,  merchant,  or  manufacturer.  Gov- 
ernment employees  are  beset  by  an  abundance  of  red  tape, 
which  not  only  is  wound  around  packages  but  also  ties  up 
men's  minds.  Many  clerks  settle  down  to  routine  work  and 
soon  seem  unable  to  resist  the  pull  of  the  dead  level.  Hence 
government  work  is  liable  to  be  far  behind  the  times,  and 
the  man  who  has  been  long  in  it  runs  the  risk  of  becoming 
unfit  for  anything  else  and  is  often  unable  to  hold  his  own 
in  the  swiftly  moving  commercial  currents. 

Civil-service  positions  as  stepping  stones.  To  truly  ambi- 
tious young  men,  however,  there  is  no  need  of  fossilizing 


136  OCCUPATIONS 

in  Washington  ;  it  is  a  splendid  place  to  prepare  for  a  pro- 
fession. The  short  working  day  permits  these  young  men  to 
spend  many  spare  hours  in  studying  law,  medicine,  finance, 
politics,  engineering,  chemistry,  etc.,  preparing  themselves 
for  a  professional  or  business  career.  "  The  educational  ad- 
vantages that  Washington  offers,"  says  the  Forimi,  "  are  not 
to  be  left  out  in  a  consideration  of  the  opportunities  in  the 
civil  service.  Positions  are  often  sought  and  obtained  for  the 
express  purpose  of  securing  means  of  earning  a  livelihood 
while  prosecuting  professional  or  scientific  studies  at  the 
Capitol.  The  law  and  medical  departments  of  Columbia, 
Georgetown,  National,  and  Howard  Universities  have  had 
their  courses  and  hours  of  instruction  especially  arranged  so 
as  to  accommodate  students  employed  during  the  day  in  the 
executive  departments.  The  Corcoran  Scientific  School  of 
Columbia  University,  which  offers  courses  to  graduate  as 
well  as  to  undergraduate  students,  was  started  in  order  to 
supply  the  same  demand.  Several  hundred  young  men  and 
women  graduate  annually  from  these  schools.  Former  de- 
partment clerks  who  are  successfully  practicing  the  legal 
and  medical  profession  in  every  state  and  territory  testify 
to  the  educational  opportunities  to  those  engaged  in  the 
civil  service." 

An  example  of  such  ad\ancemcnt  is  seen  in  the  career 
of  George  15.  Cortelyou,  who  was  once  a  stenographer  in 
the  Post  Office  Department  on  the  usual  beginner's  salary. 
He  was  steadily  promoted,  finally  became  secretary  to  Presi- 
dent Roosevelt  at  $5000  a  year,  later  served  as  Secretary 
of  Commerce  and  Labor  at  $8000  a  year,  and  after  filling 
successfully  two  other  cabinet  positions  accepted  the  presi- 
dency of  the  Consolidated  Gas  Company  in  New  York. 

Young  men  of  initiative,  however,  do  not  need  to  leave 
the  civil  service  to  seek  a  career  elsewhere.  Government 
activity  in  this  era  of  the  new  nationalism  and  the  efficiency 
mox'cmcnt  is  widening  its  scope  and  improving  its  methods 


CIVIL  SERVICE  137 

of  work.  In  several  lines  there  are  good  opportunities, 
among  which  \vc  shall  treat  briefly  the  following. 

Experts  in  administrative  methods.  The  work  done  by 
the  production  expert,  or  the  efficiency  engineer,  needs  to  be 
done  in  government  circles  as  well.  President  Taft  insti- 
tuted many  reforms  by  means  of  his  Economy  and  Efficiency 
Commission.  If  standards  set  by  this  commission  are  fol- 
lowed up  as  they  should  be,  clerks  who  study  better  methods 
of  getting  results  will  be  welcomed  and  promoted. 

Employees  in  business,  railroading,  and  finance.  The  last 
few  years  have  witnessed  a  great  deal  of  activity  in  trust 
regulation,  railroad  and  financial  investigation.  Men  trained 
in  business  methods,  corporation  accounting,  banking,  and 
stocks  are  finding  good  openings.  And  they  will  continue 
to  find  such  openings,  for  this  work  is  steadily  increasing. 

Engineering  and  technical  positions.    As  an  illustration  of 

positions  which  the  Civil  Service  Commission  at  times  has  at 

its  disposal,  we  may  note  this  announcement  in  the  Raihvay 

Joiiriial : 

POSITIONS   FOR  MECHANICAL  MEN 

Editor  Railzvay  Journal : 

The  Commission  incloses  herewith  copies  of  announcements  of  exami- 
nations to  be  held  for  filling  positions  in  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commis- 
sion under  the  act  providing  for  the  valuation  of  the  property  of  carriers. 
The  examinations  to  be  held  are  as  follows :  ^ 

Necessary  expenses  when  absent  from  headquarters  in  the  discharge 
of  official  duties  will  be  allowed.  It  will  be  noted  that  positions  for 
which  the  salaries  are  $1800  or  more  do  not  require  the  applicants  to 
assemble  at  any  place  for  examination. 

JOHN  A.  McILHENNV 
Acting  president,  United  States  Civil  Service  Commission 
Washington,  D.C.,  June  12,  [1913]. 

There  are  also  positions  for  engineers  in  the  geologi- 
cal survey  and  the  coast  and  geodetic  survey,  as  well  as 
work  for  mechanical  men  other  than  the  valuation  of  the 

1  See  table  on  next  page. 


138 


OCCUPATIONS 


Examination 

Senior  structural  draftsman  .  .  . 
Senior  mechanical  engineer  .  .  . 
Senior  railway  signal  engineer  .  . 
Senior  electrical  engineer  .... 
Senior  inspector  of  car  equipment 

Senior  civil  engineer 

Senior  inspector  of  motive  power . 

Senior  architect 

Architect 

Inspector  of  motive  power     .     .     . 

Civil  engineer 

Inspector  of  car  equipment    .     .     . 

Electrical  engineer 

Railway  signal  engineer     .     .    .     . 

Mechanical  engineer 

Structural  engineer 


$1800  to  $4000 

$1800  to  $4800 

$1800  to  $4800 

$1800  to  $4800 

$1800  to  $3600 

$1800  to  $4800 

$iSoo  to  $3600 

$1800  to  $4800 

S1080  to  $1500 

$1200  to  $1500 

$720  to  $1500 

$1200  to  $1500 

$1080  to  $1500 

$1080  to  $1500 

$1080,  to  $1500 

$1080  to  $1500 

property  mentioned  in  the  above  quotation.  The  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  offers  many  opportunities  for  young 
men  well  trained  in  science. 

In  the  consular  service.  The  consular  service  possesses 
an  ideal  merit  system,  and  has  many  other  interesting  features 
in  addition  to  the  salary,  which  ranges  from  $2000  to  Si  2,000 
per  year.  But  "our  diplomatic  and  consular  service,"  says 
Congressman  Fowler,  "  is  still  the  football  of  politics,  and 
many  a  good  man  and  trained  servant  is  compelled  to  make 
way  for  some  less  competent  successor  whose  assistance  in 
the  presidential  campaign  was  the  price  paid  for  his  claim 
to  the  place."  This  situation,  however,  is  being  improved 
gradually.  To  the  young  man  who  wishes  to  advance,  a  con- 
sul's position  is  surely  desirable,  and  the  time  will  come,  it 
is  hoped,  when  only  trained  men,  basing  their  appointments 
on  merit,  will  hold  these  places. 

In  the  field  of  statistics.  The  government  is  collecting  a 
vast  amount  of  data  regarding  our  national  wealth,  the 
movement  of  immigration,  the  relations  between  labor  and 


CIVIL  SERVICE  139 

capital,  etc.  These  data  must  be  analyzed,  classified,  and  ap- 
propriately presented.  This  is  the  work  of  the  statistician, 
who  needs  a  thorough  grounding  in  statistics,  mathematics, 
and  the  broader  aspects  of  his  work  as  presented  in  eco- 
nomics and  sociology.  Such  a  man  should  preferably  be  a 
college  graduate,  who  during  his  course  has  specialized  in 
these  subjects  and  later  has  conducted  some  field  investi- 
gations. As  good  a  way  as  any,  perhaps,  is  to  begin  as  a 
census  enumerator.  The  statistician's  salary  ranges  from 
$1200  to  ^3000  a  year. 

These  are  merely  a  few  of  the  many  positions  now  avail- 
able, a  number  which  will  constantly  increase.  The  federal 
government  and  the  various  states  and  municipalities  are 
enlarging  their  functions  in  the  service  of  citizens.  The 
demand  for  efficiency  voiced  by  these  citizens  can  be  satis- 
fied only  by  trained  men,  and  civil  service  is  the  way  to 
secure  them. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Draw  up  a  list  of  all  the  cix'il-servicc  positions  held  in  your 
town. 

2.  Interview  some  civil-service  employee.  Find  out  what  you  can 
about  his  work. 

3.  Why  are  government  employees  more  liable  than  others  to  get 
into  a  rut  ? 

4.  Discuss  the  work  of  President  Taft's  Economy  and  Efficiency 
Commission. 

5.  If  you  are  personally  interested  in  making  government  work  a 
stepping  stone  to  some  more  desirable  vocation,  how  could  you  do 
this? 

6.  What  opening,  if  any,  does  the  government  offer  which  interests 
you  as  a  life-career  ?  What  do  you  regard  as  most  desirable  about  this 
particular  position .'' 


I40  OCCUPATIONS 

readings  and  references 
Books 

FoLTZ,  E.  B.  K.    Federal  Civil  Service  as  a  Career.    G.  P.  Putnam's 

Sons,  New  York,  1909.    $1.50. 
Fowler,    C.    N.     Public   Service.     In  Careers  for  the   Coming  Men, 

pp.  171-178. 
Garfield,  James  R.,  editor.    Public  Service,  Vol.  VI.    Young  Folks' 

Library.     Hall  and  Locke  Company,  Boston.    Sold  in  sets  of  ten 

volumes. 
Manual   of   Examinations.     Luiited    States   Civil   Service   Commission, 

Washington,  D.C. 
Manuals  of  Examinations  of   your    state  and  municipal  civil  service 

commissions. 
Report  of  United  States  Civil  Service  Commission,  Washington,  D.C. 

Annual. 
Reports  of  your  state  and  municipal  civil  service  commissions. 

Periodicals 

TJie  Cliicf.  A  weekly  periodical  devoted  to  the  civil  service.  Publishes 
notices  of  examinations  and  lists  of  test  questions  and  books  designed 
to  prepare  students  for  various  positions.    New  York.   $2.50  per  year. 

Army  and  navy  information  may  be  obtained  from  their  respective 
departments  upon  request. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

MANUFACTURING 

What  a  plastic  little  creature  man  is !  so  shifty,  so  adaptive !  his  body 
a  chest  of  tools,  and  he  making  himself  comfortable  in  every  climate,  in 
every  condition.  —  Emerson 

For  every  wage  earner  employed  in  1909  the  value  added  to  raw  prod- 
ucts by  manufacture  was  $1291.  —  Abstract  from  the  thirteenth  census 

Importance  of  modern  manufacturing.  Every  morning  all 
over  the  civilized  world  factory  whistles  blow.  At  the  same 
time  such  an  immense  multitude  assembles  that  were  all 
American  manufacturing  employees  to  stand  one  behind  the 
other,  hands  on  shoulders,  they  would  form  a  human  chain 
two  thousand  nine  hundred  miles  long.  These  American 
workers  turn  out  annually  a  product  whose  value  expressed 
in  silver  dollars  would,  if  laid  edge  to  edge,  make  a  silver 
sidewalk  four  feet  wide  reaching  five  times  around  the  earth. 

So  progressive  are  our  industries  that  this  enormous 
annual  product  of  more  than  $20,000,000,000  represented 
an  increase  of  40  per  cent  between  1904  and  1909.  W^hat 
inconceivable  sum  may  it  become  when  you  are  mature  men, 
for  the  manufacturing  industry  is  not  yet  old !  When  your 
grandfather  was  a  boy,  if  the  meat  supply  ran  low  they 
butchered  a  hog  or  a  beef,  salted  down  part,  sold  part  to 
the  neighbors,  and  then  had  fresh  meat  for  several  days. 
But  now  hogs  and  cattle  are  shipped  to  the  great  stockyards, 
which  are  lined  with  huge  packing  houses,  and  the  meat- 
packing industry  heads  the  list  of  factory  products. 

Beginnings  of  manufacturing.  There  was  a  time  when 
manufacturing  was  mainly  women's  work.  The  savage 
brave  shot  the  deer ;  his  squaw  removed  the  skin,  tanned  it, 

141 


142 


OCCUPATIONS 


and  made  the  moccasins.  Likewise,  while  her  lord  was  out 
upon  the  warpath,  she  gathered  various  seeds  and  crushed 
them  in  a  mortar,  thus  laying  the  foundation  for  our  great 
milling  industr)'.  But  after  a  time,  when  hunting  became 
poor  and  enemies  grew  peaceful,  all  the  members  of  a 
family  joined  in  working  up  their  products  for  use.    They 


Factory  work 
Students  learning  at  first  hand  how  to  manufacture  electrical  apparatus 

made  shoes  from  hides,  wove  cloth  from  fibers,  shaped 
reeds  into  baskets.  And  thus  the  home  became  a  factory. 
All  this  work  was  done  by  hand.  There  was  no  machin- 
ery and  only  a  few  simj^le  tools.  Boys  who  study  Latin  can 
see  how  the  word  "  manufacture  "  {)iia}i?is,  the  hand  ;  faccir, 
to  make)  tells  the  tale.  Jiut  after  many  years  there  came  a 
great  change.  Let  us  turn  to  England,  where  this  domes- 
tic system,  in  operation  for  centuries,  at  length  underwent 
its  mighty  transformation.  Owing  to  the  invention  of  the 
spinning  jenny   by  James    Hargreaves,    in    1764,    and  the 


MANI^FACTURING 


143 


improvements  made  by  Arkwright  and  Crompton,  spinning 
came  to  be  done  by  machinery.  Weaving  too  was  removed 
from  the  control  of  the  hand  worker  by  Sir  Edmund  Cart- 
wright's  power  loom.  The  steam  engine,  able  to  furnish 
abundant  power,  had  been  so  perfected  by  17 8^4  that  it  could 
be  used  for  factory  purposes.    So  quickl\'  was  the  transforma- 


Interior  view  of  a  modern  factory 

An   example  of   specialization  of   labor   and    large   capitalization.    This   particular 

factory  is  engaged  in   making  electric  locomotives  for  railroad  use,  especially  in 

tunnels  and  city  terminals 

tion  brought  about  that  in  some  twenty  years  all  the  essential 
inventions  were  made,  and  manufacturing  began  to  leave  the 
homes,  to  be  done  in  big  buildings  with  expensive  machinery 
and  strong  engines.  Thus  was  born  the  modern  factory  system. 
Nature  of  modern  manufacturing.  Very  little  manufac- 
turing is  now  done  outside  of  factories.  Instead,  the  hand 
workers  have  long  since  left  their  looms  and  spinning  wheels, 
and  are  marching  to  the  factories  daily  —  a  peaceful  army 


144  OCCUPATIONS 

6,000,000  strong.  No  one  of  them  makes  an  entire  shoe 
or  an  entire  book.  An  intricate  division  of  labor  has  been 
developed,  so  that  each  worker  specializes  on  one  process. 
The  young  man  who  wants  to  enter  factory  work  will  find 
few  all-round  jobs.  He  will  very  likely  be  required  to 
specialize  so  as  to  do  some  one  thing  well. 

He  will  find  also  that  manufacturing  companies  are 
becoming  larger  and  larger.  For  instance,  the  amount  of 
capital  invested  in  manufacturing  during  the  ten  years  from 
1899  to  1909  increased  105  per  cent,  but  the  number  of 
establishments  increased  only  29  per  cent.  And  while  cor- 
porations numbered  only  25  per  cent  of  all  the  manufactur- 
ing establishments  in  the  United  States,  still  they  employed 
75  per  cent  of  all  wage  earners.  What  does  this  mean  to 
an  interested  young  man  ?  It  indicates  clearly  that  it  is 
much  harder  for  him  to-day  to  become  an  independent 
manufacturer  than  it  was  for  his  grandfather. 

The  prospective  manufacturer  may  have  some  special  ad- 
vantages in  entering  his  life  work,  such  as  living  in  a  man- 
ufacturing center ;  or  he  may  possibly  have  the  ability  to 
develop  a  special  product  from  the  ground  up,  as  young 
Charles  Hart  did  in  becoming  the  largest  builder  of  gas 
tractors  in  this  country.  While  the  young  man  planning  to 
be  a  manufacturer  may  have  it  in  his  ambition  to  be  an 
independent  owner  some  day,  for  the  present  he  must  start 
near  the  bottom  and  learn  the  business,  and  he  naturally 
wants  a  position  with  some  well-established  company.  This 
raises  the  question.  What  sort  of  factory  work  is  most 
attractive  ? 

EXERCISES 

1.  Learn  from  some  old  man  how  manufacturing  was  carried  on  in 
his  boyhood. 

2.  Do  you  know  any  community  where  this  old-time  system  is  still 
followed?    (See  World's  Work,  Vol.  XIX,  p.  12704.) 

3.  Tell  of  the  early  history  of  the  steam  engine. 


MANUFACTURING  145 

4.  Select  some  line  of  manufacturing  of  particular  interest  to  you 
and  find  out  something  of  its  historical  development. 

5.  Would  you  call  your  community  a  manufacturing  center  ?    What 
different  commodities  does  it  manufacture  ? 

6.  What  is  meant  by  "  division  of  labor  "  ?    Visit  some  factory  and 
observe  it  in  actual  operation. 


WHAT  WORK  CONNECTED  WITH   MANUFACTURING 
IS   MOST  ATTRACTIVE.? 

A  manufacturing  establishment,  like  a  railroad  or  a  whole- 
sale h(uise,  is  a  complex  affair  with  many  kinds  of  work  to 
be  done.  The  young  man  may  be  mystified  by  its  organ- 
ization and  uncertain  as  to  what  part  is  best  for  him.  So 
let  us  simplify  matters  at  once.  Broadly  considered,  there 
are  two  main  lines  of  activity  :  the  production  of  goods  and 
the  selling  of  them.  The  manufacturer  who  can  produce 
cheaply  and  sell  profitably  has  done  all  that  any  good  factory 
owner  desires.  But  to  do  this,  of  course,  requires  organ- 
ization. Let  us  look  first  at  the  commercial  or  selling  end 
of  the  business. 

The  Commercial  Department 

Here  you  will  find  an  organization  very  similar  to  any 
commercial  concern,  though  modified  somewhat  to  meet 
the  needs  of  the  factory.  For  instance,  the  salesman  for 
a  packing  house  or  steel  plant  performs  very  much  the 
same  sort  of  work  as  does  a  salesman  traveling  for  a 
wholesale  grocery  house  or  one  selling  town  lots.  Con- 
sequently, the  prospective  factory  salesman  can  read  with 
profit  in  Chapter  V,  Commercial  Occupations,  the  sec- 
tion on  the  selling  department.  He  will  also  find  at  the 
end  of  that  chapter  a  list  of  books  that  will  prove  of  great 
value  to  him. 


146  OCCUPATIONS 

Yet  it  must  be  emphasized  that  these  positions  should 
not  be  overlooked  merely  because  they  are  not  treated  again 
in  this  section.  While  all  factories  need  bookkeepers  and 
stenographers,  many  offer  positions  as  accountants,  secre- 
taries, and  salesmen  quite  as  good  as  in  any  strictly  com- 
mercial organization. 

The  Production  Department 

It  is  on  the  production  side  of  the  business  that  manufac- 
turing in  its  strict  sense  takes  place.  Perhaps  you  think  that 
here  every  man  wears  overalls,  handles  big  wrenches  with 
greasy  hands,  and  is  making  something.  But  production  is 
a  complicated  process  and  covers  a  wide  range  of  activities. 
The  beginner  is  apt  to  be  surprised  at  the  great  amount  of 
work  necessary  in  order  to  get  ready  to  manufacture.  There 
are  three  general  lines  of  activity  :  preparing  for  manufac- 
turing, the  manufacturing  proper,  and  caring  for  the  prod- 
uct when  made.  The  diagram  which  follows  indicates 
broadly  the  scope  of  production.  T^ach  division  will  be  dis- 
cussed in  turn,  but  parts  of  them  only  briefl\",  since  the  work 
of  these  parts  is  treated  in  greater  detail  under  Chajjter  X, 
The  Machine  and  Allied  Trades. 

Designing.  This  division  is  in  charge  of  a  chief  designer 
and  as  many  assistant  designers  as  are  necessary.  It  is 
a  work  which  requires  (i)  extensive  knowledge  of  trade 
conditions,  how  to  appeal  to  customers  by  a  new-shaped 
shoe  or  automobile ;  (2)  technical  skill,  the  means  by  which 
the  design  can  be  realized  through  labor  and  machinery  ; 
and  (3)  initiative,  the  ability  to  strike  out  boldly,  though 
sanely,  on  new  lines.  Such  qualities,  if  of  a  high  order, 
—  especially  the  productive  impulse,  or  initiative,  —  are 
rarely  found  combined  in  one  person.  Good  designers 
consequently  command  desirable  working  conditions  and 
large  salaries. 


MANUFACTURING 


M7 


H 

)-l 

^ 

tn 

W 

rt 

S 

C3 

MS  1 

U 

„ 

< 

C8 

X, 

D 

< 

a> 

SO 

Experiment  and 
Modeling 
Chief  Engineer 

<. 

u- 

C^ 

s--a 

^h 

«H 

M  _ 

Ui     LT, 

1     « 

i2.5 

.S  j= 

M^ 

WW 

^ 

.. 

^ 

£  u 

o   i! 

u 

X  w 

T 

3      r 

Q 

«  u 

c« 

!= 

&  = 

§  3 

o 

< 

C  >^S 

1)        -CI      C 


u     -a  y= 


^  — 


s  .s 


*j  j2 


03 


C     l-i 

I  ^ 

a   o 


.-   so 
•5  .S 


^     3 

S  2 


148  OCCUPATIONS 

Drafting.  The  designs  are  turned  over  to  the  drafting 
division,  where  working  drawings  or  blue  prints,  as  they 
are  called,  are  prepared.  This  work  —  if  the  factory  is  large 
and  many  different  products  are  turned  out,  for  each  of 
which  new  drawings  must  be  prepared  —  requires  a  chief 
draftsman  and  several  assistant  draftsmen.  It  is  a  vocation 
requiring  qualifications  much  more  limited  than  does  design- 
ing. Many  so-called  designers,  in  fact,  are  really  only 
good  draftsmen. 

Pattern  making.  When  the  design  for  the  proposed  prod- 
uct has  been  approved  and  the  blue  print  made,  the  next 
requirement  is  the  patterns.  This  division  is  in  charge  of  a 
foreman  and  whatever  assistants  he  may  need. 

Tool  making.  The  new  pattern  may  call  for  new  tools, 
the  making  of  which  is  a  highly  important  task  when  large 
orders  are  received  requiring  intricate  processes  of  manu- 
facture. The  foreman  and  his  assistants  may  construct  the 
tools,  but  if  the  task  is  too  difficult  for  them  they  will 
receive  help  from  others,  especially  the  designers. 

Store  room.  A  constant  supply  of  materials  from  which 
to  make  the  articles  must  be  on  hand.  These  materials 
when  received  are  checked  up  by  the  chief  stores  clerk  or 
his  assistant  clerks.  They  check  out  materials  as  needed 
upon  receipt  of  proper  requisitions.  A  large  shoe  manu- 
facturing company  in  St.  Louis  gives  its  beginning  clerks 
$15  per  week;  when  experienced,  $20  to  $25;  and  the 
chief  storekeeper  an  annual  salary  of  $1560.  A  leading 
automobile  firm  in  Detroit  pays  25  cents  an  hour  to  start, 
30  cents  an  hour  as  the  average,  and  $20  to  $25  per  week 
to  the  stores  foremen. 

Engineering,  To  set  and  maintain  the  factory  in  oper- 
ation requires  power,  lighting,  ventilation,  and  sanitation. 
These  are  the  duties  of  the  mechanical  engineer.  He  has 
for  his  assistants  the  engineer,  firemen,  electrician,  plumber, 
and  so  on. 


I 


MANUFACTURING 


149 


Manufacturing.  I'iiis  is  l)y  far  the  largest  and  most  im- 
portant division  of  production.  Many  factories  require  no 
pattern  maker,  have  no  tool  room,  and  employ  no  designer. 
But  no  factory  operates  without  a  manufacturing  division. 
The  chief  official  in  charge  is  a  superintendent,  who  directs 
several   lines  of  activity,  which  will  be  presented  in  order. 


Operating  a  disc  grinder 

This  workman  is  preparing  piston  rings  for  use  in  automobile  cylinders.   The  high 

efficiency  of  our  touring  cars  and  trucl^s  is  dependent  in  large  measure  upon  the 

intelligence  of  men  such  as  he 

I.  Wage  eai'ucrs.  In  this  subdivision  are  found  the 
workers  themselves,  a  vast  army  of  6,600,000  wage  earners. 
They  perform  all  sorts  of  tasks,  from  pouring  metal,  grind- 
ing plowshares,  and  killing  beeves,  to  cutting  cloth,  sewing 
shoes,  and  printing  books.  Part  of  these  workers  are  en- 
tirely unskilled,  and   upon  them   the  burdens  of   industry 


I  50  OCCUPA  riONS 

bear  heaviest.  Their  hours  per  day  are  the  longest,  their 
earnings  per  year  the  lowest,  and,  owing  to  the  unhealthful 
surroundings  in  whieh  they  frequently  work,  their  life 
careers  the  shortest. 

Such  evil  conditions  have  not  prevailed  for  years,  how- 
ever, in  many  of  our  factories.  Manufacturers  in  large 
and  steadily  increasing  numbers  have  been  providing  sani- 
tary buildings,  with  improved  lighting  and  ventilation  and 
often  equipped  with  comfortable  lunch  rooms.  Best  of 
all,  these  manufacturers  have  been  joining  with  the  trade 
unions  and  the  state  in  passing  legislation  which  requires 
all  factories  to  maintain  that  standard  of  working  conditions 
demanded  b\-  public  opinion. 

More  than  this  is  the  changed  character  of  factory  work. 
The  low  opinion  of  wage  earners  held  by  some  whose 
knowledge  of  factory  work  is  limited  would  be  consider- 
ably changed  were  these  people  to  visit  a  number  of  repre- 
sentative plants.  Wage  earners  will  be  found  there  in  large 
numbers  doing  work  requiring  a  high  degree  of  intelligence, 
and  if  one  engages  them  in  conversation  he  will  find  them 
not  only  thoroughly  trained  in  their  particular  tasks  but 
well  informed  on  topics  of  general  interest.  Such  work- 
men prove  to  us  that  our  manufactured  products  can  be 
made  under  conditions  which  cultivate  not  merely  the 
muscles  but  the  minds  of  men  as  well. 

2.  Foreuicn,  ma  nailers,  supcrijitcndoits.  Here  and  there 
we  find  a  workman  who  shows  a  better  grasp  of  factory  proc- 
esses than  do  his  comrades,  has  ability  to  direct  others,  and 
is  more  loyal  to  the  company's  interests.  He  is  likely  to  be 
promoted  to  the  position  of  foreman,  or,  if  these  qualifica- 
tions are  developed  to  a  higher  degree,  to  manager  of  some 
room  or  department  in  the  factory. 

Foremen,  as  might  be  expected,  receive  better  salaries 
than  the  general  wage  earners.  Although  no  general  statis- 
tics have  been  gathered  by  the  United  States  Census  Bureau, 


MANUFACTURING  15 1 

a  number  of  typical  manufacturing  concerns  have  told  us 
what  their  salary  schedules  are.  The  lowest  wage  paid  fore- 
men in  any  of  these  plants  is  $20  per  week ;  the  high- 
est, $45.  The  annual  earnings  reported  to  us  indicate  that 
foremen  receive  about  ^1500. 

Those  who  have  charge  of  a  department  in  the  factory, 
such  as  erecting  shop,  tool  shop,  power  house,  foundry,  etc., 
and  whose  title  is  division  manager,  superintendent,  or 
head  foreman,  receive  from  $30  to  §5 5  per  week,  an  an- 
nual wage  indicated  by  our  data  of  about  $2000.  Should  a 
division  manager  work  up  to  the  next  higher  position,  that 
of  directing  the  work  of  the  entire  factory,  his  salar)'  will 
be  from  $35  a  week,  the  lowest  reported  to  us,  to  $10,000 
a  year,  the  highest  shown  by  our  returns.  The  average 
man  can  expect  from  about  SiSoo  to  S3000. 

If  a  young  man  aims  for  an  executive  position  he  would 
do  well  to  become  for  a  while  a  workman  in  the  ranks. 
In  the  meantime  let  him  be  observant  and  give  himself 
seriously  to  the  problems  of  the  production  expert,  which 
will  be  discussed  next.  The  books  cited  in  the  Readings 
and  References  at  the  end  of  the  chapter  supply  informa- 
tion of  great  value  to  ever\-  prospective  foreman,  manager, 
or  other  executive. 

3.  Production  expert.  The  production  expert  is  a  com- 
paratively new  worker.  The  old-time  factory  management 
never  thought  of  employing  his  services.  The  need  for  such 
services  to-day,  however,  is  being  recognized  everywhere. 
"  During  the  past  twenty-five  years,"  says  Dr.  Brisco, 
"  American  industrial  and  business  life  has  undergone 
many  changes.  Increased  competition  cut  profits  to  a  nar- 
row margin,  and  in  order  to  lower  costs,  the  managers  have 
been  driven  to  a  study  of  factory  conditions.  The  factory, 
therefore,  is  to-day  the  center  of  investigation  and  study. 
The  wastes  of  time,  energy,  and  materials  revealed  by  this 
study  amazed  even  the  most  successful  managers.    Efficiency, 


152  OCCUPATIONS 

the  modern  watchword,  demands  organization,  system,  cost  ac- 
counting, cooperation,  and  coordination,  and  touches  business 
activities  outside  the  factory,  as  advertising,  buying,  and  sell- 
ing. No  branch  of  industry  has  escaped  investigation,  and  the 
result  is  a  grreat  awakening  to  the  lack  of  method  and  svstem." 


Studying  a  turntable  lathe 

This  production  expert  is  testing  a  new  machine  under  various  conditions  of  speed, 
hardness  of  metal  to  be  worked,  and  the  amount  of  metal  to  be  cut  at  each  revolu- 
tion.   His  investigations  completed,  he  will  have  all  the  machines  in  this  shop  run 
according  to  the  rules  he  has  deduced 

To  see  that  the  work  of  the  factory  is  efficiently  con- 
ducted is  the  work  of  the  production  expert.  He  is  trained 
in  scientific  management.  He  gathers  from  every  possible 
source  all  the  information  he  can  regarding  the  ways  of 
doing  some  particular  task  and  then  proceeds,  like  a  true 
scientist,  to  determine  the  one  best  waw  He  next  teaches 
the  workmen  this  one  best  way.    Finally,  he  places  as  much 


MANUFACTURING  1 5  3 

as  possible  of  the  work  upon  the  office  instead  of  upon  the 
workmen.  For  instance,  a  production  expert  figured  out  to 
a  nicety  just  how  to  assemble  an  engine,  even  to  the  exact 
number  of  turns  to  give  each  bolt.  After  this,  instead  of 
letting  each  workman  experiment  for  himself  he  had  the 
office  typewrite  his  directions  and  furnish  carbon  copies  to 
the  men. 

A  good  production  expert  is  a  valuable  man  and  is  paid 
accordingly.  As  might  be  expected  there  are  a  number  of 
these  "  business  doctors  "  whose  services  are  worthless  and 
who  tend  to  bring  the  profession  into  discredit.  The  leading 
ones  are  not  employed  continuously  by  any  one  firm,  but 
maintain  offices  from  which  they  make  calls,  as  a  physician 
would,  upon  firms  in  need  of  their  skill.  But  here  is  a  point 
you  should  never  forget  even  if  you  have  no  intention  of 
making  this  your  sole  calling  —  every  executive  needs  to  be 
somewhat  of  a  production  expert.  A  broad,  well-balanced, 
analytic  mind,  some  technical  education,  including  a  study 
of  the  books  listed  at  the  end  of  the  chapter,  will  go  far 
toward  making  you  a  production  expert  in  fact,  whether  or 
not  you  ever  adopt  the  title. 

4.  Cost  accoimtant.  Manufacturers  formerly  had  no  exact 
knowledge  of  just  how  much  their  production  costs  were, 
relying  instead  on  experienced  guesswork.  But  such  hap- 
hazard methods  are  fast  passing  away.  Manufacturers  are 
keeping  careful  account  of  the  cost  of  materials,  labor,  and 
overhead  charges,  in  this  way  basing  their  success  upon 
science  instead  of  luck.  To  devise  plans  for  accomplishing 
this  purpose  is  the  work  of  the  cost  accountant. 

It  may  seem  at  first  that  the  cost  accountant  is  merely  a 
bookkeeper.  While  it  is  true  that  a  knowledge  of  bookkeep- 
ing and  accounting  is  fundamental  in  his  work,  it  is  also 
true  that  the  profession  of  cost  accountant  has  been  devel- 
oped rather  by  production  experts  than  by  bookkeepers.  To 
enter  this  field,  consequently,  a  knowledge  of  general  factory 


^54 


OCCUPATIONS 


conditions  should  be  gained.  This  knowledge  can  be  secured 
in  one  way  by  working  for  a  time  in  different  factory  posi- 
tions. Added  to  this  should  be  some  knowledge  of  efficiency 
and  accounting,  which  can  be  gained  from  the  books  men- 
tioned at  the  end  of  Chapter  V  and  at  the  end  of  this  chapter. 


A  factory  process  requiring  trained  men 

'I'hcse  men  are  turning  wheels  for  railroad  car  trucks.   'J'hey  must  be  carefully  trained, 

since  they  have  charge  of  expensive  machineiy  and  must  produce  the  full  day's  quota 

of  fifteen  pairs  of  wheels  without  injur)'  to  the  machine  or  spoiling  the  work 


5.  Office  employees.  To  perform  the  clerical  work  for  the 
production  expert  and  the  cost  accountant,  as  well  as  to 
handle  all  the  various  records  which  are  entailed  by  the 
regular  run  of  factory  work,  numerous  clerks,  bookkeepers, 
stenographers,  and  typewriters  are  required.  This  work  is  so 
similar  to  that  discussed  under  this  head  in  Chapter  V  that 
no  further  discussion  is  required  here. 


MANUFACTURING  155 

6.  Educational  and  social  ii.'orkers.  High-grade  em- 
ployees only  can  perform  the  efficient  work  demanded  in 
many  factory  processes.  Since  skilled  workmen  are  scarce, 
employers,  in  order  to  meet  the  demands,  are  in  many  cases 
developing  men  of  their  own  by  means  of  apprenticeship 
schools.  As  an  illustration  of  what  such  schools  are  doing, 
the  Westinghouse  Electric  and  Manufacturing  Company  has 
a  training  school  for  apprentices,  a  technical  night  school, 
and  a  course  of  training  for  technical  graduates.  In  the 
course  for  apprentices  the  trades  of  machinist,  pattern  maker, 
tool  maker,  and  electrician  may  be  studied.  The  course  cov- 
ers four  years,  part  of  it  being  shop  work  and  part  class  work. 
The  shop  work  is  supervised  by  a  shop  instructor  with  several 
assistants,  and  for  the  class  work  there  are  fifteen  teachers. 

As  an  example  of  work  somewhat  less  definitely  educa- 
tional, the  activities  of  the  Dodge  Manufacturing  Company 
of  Mishawaka,  Indiana,  may  be  cited.  Their  heads  of  de- 
partments are  supplied  with  books  and  magazines  bearing 
on  economics,  mechanics,  and  engineering.  Daily  papers, 
current  books,  encyclopedias,  and  books  of  reference  are 
placed  on  the  library  shelves.  Weekly  meetings  are  held 
at  which  papers  are  presented  and  discussed.  What  the 
Dodge  Company  does  for  its  department  heads,  other  com- 
panies attempt  to  do  in  a  more  limited  way  for  all  their 
employees. 

Another  line  of  work  includes  recreation  as  carried  on 
by  clubs,  athletic  teams,  smokers'  conferences,  dramatics, 
field  days ;  hygiene,  the  movement  for  better  light,  more 
air,  purer  water,  laundries,  bathrooms,  rest  rooms ;  and 
mutuality,  as  seen  in  benefit  associations,  good-will  asso- 
ciations, pensions. 

In  pushing  to  the  fore  all  such  activities,  there  has  been 
developed  a  new  profession  —  that  of  the  social  engineer. 
He  needs  to  be  thoroughly  grounded  in  practical  sociology 
and  to  have  some  training   in  biology  (especially  hygiene). 


156  OCCUPATIONS 

a  first-hand  knowledge  of  factory  conditions,  and  the  abihty 
to  work  with  men.  There  are  few  such  positions  available 
as  yet,  but  there  are  also  few  men  thus  qualified. 

Finished  stores.  When  the  manufacturing  division  has 
done  its  work  on  the  raw  materials,  they  are  sent  to  the 
finished-stores  room.  Sometimes  they  are  to  be  kept  here 
until  called  for  by  the  assembling  room,  the  finished  pieces 
being  sold  not  individually  but  as  one  completed  machine. 
In  this  case  the  head  of  the  division  is  called  the  chief 
stores  clerk.  At  other  times  the  product  when  first  sent  to 
the  stores  room  is  completed,  and  in  this  case  the  head  of  the 
division  is  more  likely  to  be  called  the  chief  shipping  clerk. 

Experimental  worker.  A  live  manufacturer  ever  seeks 
to  improve  his  product.  He  cannot  wait  for  outsiders  to 
come  to  his  office  with  new  inventions,  but  employs  an 
inventor  who  sets  about  producing  new  ideas  in  a  business- 
like way.  Needless  to  say,  the  requirements  of  this  man, 
the  chief  engineer,  are  not  widely  possessed  nor  have 
schools  yet  learned  how  to  develop  them  satisfactorily. 
But  a  technical  education,  familiarity  with  commercial  de- 
mands, and  initiative  are  qualifications  of  value. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Have  there  been  strikes  in  your  local  factories.'' 

2.  Interview  some  factory  foreman.  Learn  how  lonj^  he  has  worked  in 
factories,  what  salaries  he  has  received,  and  what  are  his  present  duties. 

3.  In  the  same  way  interview  a  head  foreman  or  division  manager; 
a  factory  superintendent. 

4.  The  production  expert  is  sometimes  called  an  efficiency  engineer 
or  business  doctor.  Who  are  some  of  these  men .''  (Their  cards  and 
advertisements  appear  in  business  and  manufacturing  magazines.)  Are 
any  of  them  located  in  your  city  ? 

5.  Find  out  what  you  can  of  Frederick  W.  Taylor,  the  famous 
production  expert :  of  ex-President  Taft's  Economy  and  Efficiency 
Commission. 

6.  Is  welfare  work  carried  on  in  any  of  your  local  factories.'' 


MANUFACTURING  157 

Becoming  a  Manufactukkr 

Would  you  enjoy  holding  some  one  of  these  various  posi- 
tions we  have  mentioned  ?  There  are  a  large  number  of  them, 
and  while  manufacturing  to-day  is  a  good  business,  in  the 
next  fifty  years  it  will  make  additional  giant  strides.  If  you 
like  machinery,  have  an  inventive  turn  of  mind,  enjoy  build- 
ing and  reshaping  and  making  things,  it  is  likely  that  you 
would  make  a  success  in  some  form  of  manufacturing. 

Training.  In  your  high-school  course  study  earnestly 
the  subjects  that  bear  on  the  particular  phase  of  manu- 
facturing that  most  interests  you.  Are  you  intending  to 
be  a  cost  accountant .''  Uelve  deeply  into  bookkeeping  and 
mathematics.  If  you  wish  to  become  a  production  expert, 
study  your  physics,  mathematics,  bookkeeping,  chemistry,  and 
history  of  commerce.  But  high-school  courses  alone  will  not 
fit  you  for  the  highest  success  in  these  positions.  You  should 
also  study  accountancy  and  scientific  management. 

I.  By  tvay  of  tccluiological  schools.  Suppose,  however, 
you  decide  on  manufacturing,  but  do  not  know  which  par- 
ticular work  to  select.  The  best  training  for  you  would  be 
a  general  technical  education.  The  Massachusetts  Institute 
of  Technology  is  a  notable  institution  of  this  sort,  and  your 
state  university  also  may  offer  a  first-class  course.  If  before 
enrolling  you  know  something  at  first  hand  of  manufactur- 
ing, the  advanced  training  will  prove  of  greater  value  to  you. 
But  after  graduation  you  will  be  surprised  to  be  offered  wages 
of  1 7  and  20  cents  per  hour.  The  maximum  salary  paid  to  a 
young  man,  no  matter  how  well  qualified,  when  he  enters  the 
employ  of  a  certain  great  steel  company,  is  only  $50  per  month. 
However,  that  is  merely  the  opening ;  your  real  position  is 
gained  through  advancement.  Here  the  technical  education 
proves  its  superiority,  for  although  beginning  at  the  bottom 
you  will  yet  considerably  distance  the  boy  who  entered  the 
factory  when  you  entered  the  technical  school. 


158 


OCCUPATIONS 


2.  In  apprentice  schools.  If  high  school  and  a  college  of 
technology  are  impossible  for  you,  there  are  still  ways  of 
securing  your  training.  Some  manufacturers  maintain  an 
apprentice  school,  or  have  entered  into  a  cooperative  plan 
with  some  Y.  M.  C.  A.  or  local  technical  school.  Fifteen 
jewelry  manufacturers  of   Providence,   Rhode   Island,   have 


Apprentices  at  school 

These  young  men  are  learning  how  to  build  gasoline  tractors,  and  their  teacher  is  the 
foreman  standing  just  in  front  of  the  big  wheel  at  the  right.    (Courtesy  of  Factoiy) 

made  arrangements  so  that  their  apprentices  are  taught  one 
week  in  the  shop  and  the  next  in  the  public  day  schools, 
which  have  pro\"idcd  special  courses  for  these  young  workers. 
The  National  Cash  Register  Company  has  been  cooperating 
with  the  Dayton  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  and  the  part-time  arrangement 
into  which  the  University  of  Cincinnati  has  entered  with 
certain  manufacturers  has  become  famous. 

3,  Aftei'  entcrhig  the  factory.    If,  as  may  possibly  be  the 
rase,  all  such  privileges  are  denied  you,  certain  other  means 


MANUFACTURING  159 

of  preparation  are  open  to  every  young  man.  You  can  ob- 
serve and  study  critically  factory  processes.  You  can  read 
some  of  the  books  listed  in  this  chapter,  and  in  various  ways 
become  better  trained  each  year.  The  trade  unions  recog- 
nize the  need  of  their  men  for  additional  training.  They 
are  not  merely  strike-machines,  as  some  believe,  but  also 
great  educative  agencies.  Unions  are  often  alive  to  outside 
opportunities,  and  try  in  many  ways  to  improve  their  mem- 
bers, sometimes  maintaining  systems  of  instruction  for  the 
younger  workmen.  Here  is  what  one  of  the  New  York 
unions  says  of  evening  schools  : 

Local  Union  247  especially  desires  to  impress  upon  our  apprentice 
members  the  opportunity  now  afforded  them  for  advancing  themselves, 
enabling  them  to  get  out  of  the  rut  and  to  insure  more  favorable  pros- 
pects for  future  success  than  they  can  possibly  expect  by  the  precarious 
apprenticeship  system  now  in  vogue. 

Our  union  will  excuse  you  from  attending  our  meetings  during  the 
school  term.  Grasp  your  opportunity  now.  P^nroll  at  once  and  endeavor 
to  acquire  proficiency  in  carpentry,  architectural  drawing,  mathematics, 
and  other  studies  the  school  affords.  Principal  Henry  T.  Wood  will 
accord  you  all  encouragement  possible.  You  will  incur  no  expense,  and 
your  time  will  be  spent  to  your  personal  advantage  and  to  the  credit  of 
your  associates  in  Local  Union  247. 

Advancement.  "  There  is  always  a  place  for  a  man 
equally  as  large  as  he  is  mentally,"  the  assistant  super- 
intendent of  the  Pope  Manufacturing  Company  wTites  us. 
"  There  is  no  way  to  go  across  lots  to  success,  and  there 
is  no  short  cut  to  knowledge.  But  there  is  always  the  long 
tiresome  road  of  endeavor  which  so  few  follow  consistently 
enough  to  arrive  at  any  special  destination  that  others  have 
not  attained."  '"  The  opportunity  for  advancement,"  a  great 
steel  company  writes,  "will  depend  upon  the  individual." 
"  Every  person  is  dependent  upon  himself,"  the  National 
Cash  Register  Company  tells  us,  "  and  is  advanced  accord- 
ing to  his  ability.     The   company's   policy  is   to    promote 


i6o 


OCCUPATIONS 


from  the  ranks,  and  as  a  result  of  this  there  are  employees 

holding  responsible  positions  with  this  company  who  at  one 

time  were  apprentices." 

I.   Charles  Schzuab's  experience.    Some  statements  given 

bv    Mr.    Schwab    explaining    his    rapid   promotion   from   a 

grocery  clerk  at  ten 
dollars  a  month  to 
the  presidency  of 
the  Bethlehem  Steel 
Company  may  sug- 
gest ways  in  which 
)0u  may  advance  in 
manufacturing : 

In  the  first  place  I  al- 
ways stood  on  my  own 
feet — always  relied  upon 
myself.  There  was  one 
thing  I  discovered  very 
early  —  that  it  would 
be  well  to  make  myself 
indispensable,  instead  of 
continually  looking  at 
the  clock.  I  thought  and 
dreamed  of  nothing  else 
but  the  steel  works.  In 
my  own  house  I  rigged 
up  a  laboratory,  and 
studied  chemistry  in  the 
evenings,  determined 
that  there  should  be 
nothing  in  the  manu- 
facture of  steel  that  I 
would  not  know.  I  attribute  my  first  great  success  to  hard  and  active 
work.  I  found  that  those  who  were  quickest  were  those  to  be  pro- 
moted. An  employer  picks  out  his  assistants  from  the  best  informed, 
most  competent,  and  conscientious.  A  man,  to  be  successful  even  as 
a  specialist,  should  have  a  good  general  knowledge,  and,  therefore, 
ought  to  read  and  study  much,  a  well-informed  man  is  always  the 
brighter  for  it.    All  through  my  life  I   have  read  and  studied. 


George  W'estinghouse  —  inventor,  engineer. 
and  business  man 

Two  of  Mr.  Westinghouse"s  greatest  accomplish- 
ments were  the  invention  of  the  air  brake,  now  used 
on  all  railroad  trains,  and  the  alternating  current 
electric  motor.  lie  stood  for  high  ideals  in  manu- 
facturing, and  proved  that  such  ideals  can  be  made 
successful 


MANUFACTURINCx  i6i 

2.  A7idrezv  Carnegie  s  rules  for  busiiiess  success.  And 
America's  greatest  manufacturer  thus  sums  up  for  young 
men  his  rules  for  business  success  : 

Aim  for  the  highest ;  never  enter  a  bar-room  ;  do  not  touch  liquor.  .  .  ; 
never  speculate ;  never  indorse  beyond  your  surplus  cash  fund ;  make 
the  firm's  interest  yours  ;  break  orders  always  to  save  owners  ;  concen- 
trate ;  put  all  your  eggs  in  one  basket,  and  watch  that  basket ;  expendi- 
ture always  within  revenue ;  lastly,  be  not  impatient,  for.  as  Emerson 
says,  "  no  one  can  cheat  you  out  of  ultimate  success  but  yourselves." 


EXERCISES 

1.  Which  one  of  the  divisions  of  manufacturing  interests  you  most.'' 
What  reasons  have  you  for  this  choice  ? 

2.  What  is  meant  by  part-time  education?    Is  it  found  in  your  high 
school  or  college  ? 

3.  What  educational  work  is  carried  on  by  any  local  trade  unions  ? 

4.  How  should  you  prepare  for  the  particular  manufacturing  work 
which  interests  you  most? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Cakxegie,  Andrew.    The  Empire  of  Business.    Doublcday,  Page  and 

Company,  New  York,  1902.    $3.00. 
Cheyney,  E.  p.    Social  and  Industrial  History  of  England.    The  Mac- 

millan  Company,  New  York.    $1.40. 
Emerson,   Harrington.     Efficiency  as  a  Basis   for   Operation  and 

Wages.    The  Eiii^ineering  Magazine,  New  York,   191 2.    #2.00. 
Gantt,  H.  L.    Work,  Wages  and   Profits.     Tlie  Engineering  Maga- 
zine, New  York,  1910.    $2.00. 
TAvi.cm,  Frederick  W.    Principles  of  Scientific  Management.    Harper 

and  Brothers,  New  York,  191 1.    $1.50. 
Taylor,  Frederick  W.    Shop  Management.    Harper  and  Brothers, 

New  York,  191 1.    $1.50. 
ToLMAN,  W.  H.    Social  Engineering.    McGraw-Hill  Book  Company, 

New  York,  1909.    $2.00. 
WiLDMAN,  John  R.    Cost  Accounting.    The  Business  Book  Bureau, 

New  York,  1913.    #2.00. 


1 62  OCCUPATIONS 

Williams,  Archibald.    How  it  is  Made.    Thomas  Nelson  and  Sons, 

New  York.    $1.20. 
Manufacturers.   Abstract  from  the  thirteenth  census,  1910,  pp.  433-536. 

Pamphlets 

Opportunities  with  the  Western  Electric  Company.  Distributed  free  on 
application  to  the  Western  Electric  Company,  Chicago.  (This  is  a 
sample  of  pamphlets  sent  out  by  several  companies  giving  informa- 
tion to  prospective  employees.) 

Articles 

CouLSON,  R.  E.    "Are  $300,000,000  worth  Saving?"    Svs/c;u,  Vol. 

XXIII,  April,  1913,  p.  363. 
Dawley,  T.  R.   "Our  Southern  Mountaineers."    U'or/i/'s  U'ork^WoX. 

XIX,  March,  1910,  p.  12704. 
Orth,   S.    p.    "Battle   Line  of   Labor."     llor/i/S    JFork,   Vol.  XXV, 
November,  191 2,  p.  49. 

Periodicals 

Facto?}'.    A.  W.  Shaw  Company,  Chicago.    $2.00  per  year  with  premium 

book. 
T/ie  Engineering  Magazine.    New  York  City.    $3.00  per  year. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE  BUILDING  TRADES 

In  the  elder  days  of  Art, 

Builders  wrought  with  greatest  care 
Each  minute  and  unseen  part ; 

For  the  Gods  see  everywhere.  —  Longfellow 

Men  have  never  before  lived  in  buildings  so  comfortable 
and  convenient  as  those  to-day,  and  in  consequence  there 
has  never  been  a  time  when  a  skillful  builder  was  more 
necessary  and  his  services  more  appreciated.  In  our  country 
we  find  a  million  carpenters  and  joiners,  a  quarter  million 
masons,  over  one  hundred  thousand  plumbers,  a  third  of 
a  million  painters  and  decorators,  and,  we  might  add,  to 
complete  this  list  of  builders,  thirty  thousand  or  more 
architects  and  their  assistant  draftsmen.  Who  can  estimate 
the  immense  service  to  our  daily  comfort  of  this  army  of 
peaceful  tradesmen  ?  To  them  we  say,  in  Ruskin's  words, 
with  ever-increasing  confidence  that  they  will  not  disappoint 
us,  "I  would  have,  then,  our  ordinary  dwelling-houses  built 
to  last,  and  built  to  be  lovely ;  as  rich  and  full  of  pleasant- 
ness as  may  be  within  and  without." 

GENERAL  SCHEME  OF  WORK  OF  THE  BUILDING 
TRADESMEN 

The  carpenter  constructs  the  wooden  framework  above  the  founda- 
tions and  builds  the  wooden  part  of  the  outer  and  partition  walls,  the 
roof,  floors,  doors,  windows,  and  other  woodwork. 

The  mason  lays  stone,  brick,  or  concrete  foundations,  builds  chim- 
neys and  the  major  part  of  brick,  stone,  and  concrete  buildings,  blankets 
the  iron  structural  framework  of  city  skyscrapers  with  stone,  cement, 
and  brick,  and  does  inside  plastering  and  outside  stucco  work. 

163 


1 64  OCCUPATIONS 

The  structural  ironworker  builds  the  iron  framework  of  large  public 
buildings,  factories,  and  skyscrapers. 

The  plumber,  steam  and  gas  fitter,  and  sheet-metal  worker  attend 
to  installing  the  heating,  gas  lighting,  and  sanitary  systems  as  well  as  to 
the  roof  and  cornice  work.  Sometimes  there  are  three  tradesmen  who 
separately  look  after  these  different  parts  of  the  work ;  sometimes  there 
is  but  one  contracting  plumber. 

The  practical  electrician  wires  the  house,  block,  or  factory  for  elec- 
tricity and  installs  electric  lighting  and,  if  desired,  power  and  heating. 

The  painter  and  decorator  paints  the  outside  wooden  (and  some- 
times brick)  surfaces  of  buildings,  "  fills  "  and  "  finishes  "  the  interior 
woodwork,  and  papers  or  otherwise  decorates  the  inside  walls  and 
ceilings. 

The  building  contractor  holds  the  contract  for  the  entire  building 
operation  and  is  usually  a  master  carpenter  or  mason.  He  is  over  the 
subcontractors,  who  are  in  charge  respectively  of  the  carpentry  work, 
the  masonry,  the  plumbing  and  heating,  or  the  electrical  installation. 
On  the  smaller  jobs,  where  no  architect  is  employed,  the  building  con- 
tractor may  also  draw  up  the  plans  and  specifications. 

The  architect  ("usually  a  professional  engineer  and  not  a  tradesman) 
draws  up  the  plans  and  specifications  of  all  large  building  operations, 
oversees  regularly  the  construction  as  it  proceeds,  and  is  the  deciding 
authority  on  matters  of  difference  between  the  contractor  and  the  owner. 
This  workman  will  be  treated  at  length  in  Chapter  XI,  The  Engineer- 
ing Professions. 

The  janitor  (not  a  building  tradesman  but  every  day  an  increasingly 
important  workman  connected  with  buildings)  tends  the  heating,  ven- 
tilation, and  sanitary  equipment,  looks  after  the  upkeep  and  minor 
rey)airs,  and  keeps  the  building  clean  and  wholesome  for  its  occupants. 

THE  carpi:nter 

Of  all  the  building  tradesmen,  the  carpenter  would  surely 
come  first  to  the  mind  of  the  average  boy.  At  any  rate, 
most  boys  are  builders  of  something  —  whether  windmills, 
watcrwheels,  wagons,  sleds,  boats,  or  other  contrivances. 
So  when  educators  decided  on  manual  training  as  an  excel- 
lent subject  for  interesting  boys  and  for  developing  the 
dexterity  of  their  hands,  they  very  naturally  introduced 
woodworking  into  the  schools.    We  trust  that  you  all  have 


THE  BLflLDlNG  TRADES  165 

been  so  fortunate  as  to  have  taken  such  a  course  in  your 
grammar-school  days.  Now  let  us  get  better  acquainted  with 
this  interesting  and  very  necessary  tradesman,  the  carpenter. 
Rank  of  carpentry  as  a  trade.  Not  only  is  carpentry 
pleasant  because  of  its  woodworking,  but  as  a  whole  it  is 
a  high-grade  occupation,  healthful,  stimulating,  ennobling. 
According  to  a  scale  of  measurement  devised  by  Dean 
Herman  Schneider  of  the  School  of  Engineering,  Uni- 
versity of  Cincinnati,  carpentry  would  rank  very  close  to 
the  100  per  cent  point.  He  rates  the  work  of  the  loco- 
motive engineer  at  100  per  cent  because  of  its  beneficial 
character  and  conditions.  Let  us  take  his  analysis  of  the 
engineer's  vocation  and  compare  it  part  by  part  with  that 
of  the  carpenter  and  note  their  similarity  and  the  reasons 
for  their  high  rating  : 

1.  "The  work  of  the  locomotive  engineer  is  done  in  the 
open  air."    So  is  much  of  the  carpenter's  work. 

2.  "It  provides  a  fairly  well-rounded  physical  develop- 
ment."   This  is  just  as  true  of  the  carpenter's  activities. 

3.  "The  constant  improvements  in  locomotive  design 
and  railway  appliances  generally  require  continuous  mental 
development."  The  improvements  in  building  design,  mate- 
rials, and  appliances  would  have  the  same  effect. 

4.  "  Mental  alertness  is  constantly  required  for  emergen- 
cies." The  carpenter,  too,  must  keep  his  wits  about  him. 

5.  "A  comprehensive  grasp  of  the  whole  interdependent 
scheme  of  production  (a  railroad  produces  transportation)  is 
essential."  The  carpenter  should  have  a  comprehensive 
grasp  of  the  whole  interdependent  scheme  of  the  house  that 
is  building,  his  work  and  that  of  the  mason,  the  plumber, 
the  electric  wirer,  and  of  the  painter  and  decorator,  as  well 
as  a  grasp  of  the  owner's  wishes  and  personal  traits. 

6.  "  The  conditions  under  which  the  same  run  is  made 
are  never  alike."  Could  the  conditions  under  which  any 
two  houses  are  built  be  exactlv  alike  .-' 


i66  OCCITPATIONS 

7,  "  TJic  iK'ork  itself  breeds  in  the  engineer  the  highest 
quahty  of  good  citizenship  ;  namely,  an  instant  willingness 
to  sacrifice  himself  for  the  lives  in  the  train  behind  him." 
To  build  houses  conscientiously  breeds  in  the  carpenter 
good  citizenship  ;  namely,  a  constant  willingness  to  sacrifice 
his  profits  and  to  lose  money,  if  necessary,  for  the  sake  of 
doing  a  thoroughly  good  job  in  "  each  minute  and  unseen 
part."  Carpenters  are  not  called  upon  as  locomotive  engi- 
neers may  be,  to  give  up  their  lives,  but  they  are  expected 
to  build  honestly,  even  though  part  of  their  work  is  covered 
by  plaster  and  will  never  be  seen. 

Nature  and  remuneration.  As  we  have  just  seen,  car- 
pentry is  mostly  open-air  work  ;  it  provides  a  fairly  well- 
rounded  physical  development;  it  requires  continuous  mental 
development ;  it  furnishes  variety  and  interest ;  it  breeds 
moral  qualities.  Unlike  some  tradesmen,  the  carpenter  re- 
quires but  little  capital  except  credit  and  skill  to  advance 
from  workman  to  proprietor,  or  contractor.  He  will  take 
first  a  small  job  as  carpenter  and  contractor,  and  then,  by 
making  a  reputation  as  a  reliable,  skilled  tradesman,  he  may 
advance  naturally  to  larger  and  larger  jobs  until  he  becomes 
a  prosperous  contractor.  To  one  of  artistic  tastes  who  will 
take  the  proper  courses  of  study,  carpentry  can  also  be  made 
the  stepping  stone  to  architecture,  a  well-paid  profession. 
As  for  social  standing,  the  carpenter  and  his  family  are 
privileged  to  move  in  the  best  circles,  provided  their 
personal  worth,  accomplishments,  and  financial  standing 
warrant  it. 

We  find  its  most  serious  disadvantages  to  be  lack  of 
work  for  part  of  the  winter  and  during  business  depres- 
sions, and  competition  with  less  skilled  carpenters  who 
either  crowd  the  trade  or  lower  the  wages.  However,  as 
in  most  occupations,  the  more  reliable  and  skilled  work- 
men do  not  lose  much  time  and  are  usually  paid  the 
highest  wages. 


i 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  167 

At  this  point  it  will  be  well  to  explain  a  few  technical 
terms.  To-day  a  young  man  may  get  his  preparation  for  car- 
pentry as  well  as  for  masonry,  plumbing,  and  various  other 
trades  by  taking  a  course  in  a  special  school  where  these 
are  taught,  or  by  contracting  for  a  term  of  years,  usually 
three,  with  a  man  already  skilled  in  the  particular  occupa- 
tion to  serve  as  his  helper  and  thus  to  learn  the  trade.  In 
this  scheme,  called  the  apprentice  system,  the  skilled  work- 
man is  termed  a  journeyman  and  the  youth  learning  the 
trade  an  apprentice.  In  the  trade  school  the  learner  earns 
no  wages  and  often  has  to  pay  a  small  tuition  fee,  while 
the  apprentice  is  usually  paid  some  wages  from  the  start. 
Because  of  the  present  insufficient  number  of  these  schools, 
and  the  fact  that  many  young  men  cannot  afford  while 
learning  their  trade  to  give  up  two  or  three  years  with  no 
wages,  there  are  still  many  youths  serving  as  apprentices. 

Now  let  us  glance  at  the  earnings  of  some  of  these 
learners  both  from  the  trade  school  and  from  the  ranks  of 
the  apprentice.  Within  six  months  after  graduation  from  a 
three  years'  course  in  carpentry  at  the  Williamson  Free 
School  of  Mechanical  Trades,  near  Philadelphia,  the  class 
of  19 10  were  earning  on  the  average  $19.59  a  week.  This 
is  a  fair  sample  of  the  wages  received  by  trade-school  grad- 
uates in  one  section,  at  least,  after  a  course  of  from  two  to 
four  years,  during  which  time  they  are  earning  no  money. 
Apprentices  from  16  to  19  years  of  age  often  earn  from  $1 
to  $1.25  a  day  the  first  year,  from  $1.15  to  $1.75  the  second 
year,  and  from  $1.50  to  $2.25  the  third  year,  the  wages  de- 
pending very  much  upon  the  section  of  the  country  and  the 
teachableness  and  industry  of  the  workman.  The  journey- 
man receives  commonly  from  $3  to  $S  and,  in  some  cities, 
even  $5.50  a  day.  Generally  speaking,  the  demand  for  reg- 
ular employment  of  skilled,  reliable  carpenters  is  good,  the 
most  capable  losing  little  time.  The  less  competent  might 
average  from  225  to  275  days  of  work  per  year. 


1 68  OCCUPATIONS 

In  carpentry  the  opportunity  for  advancement  is  com- 
paratively rapid  for  young  men  of  the  right  sort.  There  is 
also  gain  here  in  following  the  father's  trade,  although,  should 
his  father  be  an  employer,  the  son  must  be  careful  not  to  put 
on  airs  among  the  men.  If  the  apprentice  makes  himself 
popular  with  the  foreman  by  willingness  to  do  cheerfully  and 
carefully  all  that  is  asked  of  him,  he  will  be  taught  many 
things  about  working  from  specifications,  and  other  fine 
points.  At  noon  he  can  get  the  plans  and  study  them  and 
help  himself  to  master  their  use.  In  some  cities  he  can 
study  architectural  drawing  at  night  school,  and,  wherever 
he  may  be,  he  can  advance  in  value  to  his  contractor  by 
studying  courses  from  correspondence  schools.  In  many  ways 
it  is  possible  for  the  young  carpenter  of  the  right  mettle  to 
advance  rapidly  in  his  trade  and  make  a  good  living. 

Natural  qualifications  and  preparation.  Of  course,  if 
you  are  going  to  be  a  successful  carpenter,  you  must  have 
a  liking  for  woodwork,  for  mathematics  (especially  geom- 
etry), and  for  things  mechanical.  Quite  likely  also  you  know 
woodworking  tools  and  have  made  many  contrivances  and 
repairs  about  the  house.  If  this  is  the  case,  you  doubtless 
have  a  natural  bent  toward  carpentry. 

If  you  should  choose  this  trade,  what  would  be  the  best 
preparation  for  it  ?  First  of  all,  you  should  complete  a  high- 
school  course,  ]3aying  most  attention  to  business  arithmetic, 
geometry,  physics,  free-hand  and  architectural  drawing. 
Next  attend  one  of  the  best  trade  schools,  where  they  are 
more  and  more  taking  real  contracts  for  their  boys  to  work 
out  under  practically  the  same  conditions  as  regular  appren- 
tices meet,  except  that  in  the  case  of  the  trade  school  the 
"bosses"  are  all  expert  teachers.  Therefore,  if  you  have  wise 
teachers  and  real  houses  to  build,  the  trade  school  should 
graduate  you  as  the  best-trained  carpenter.  Many  large  cities 
have  these  schools,  in  wliich  the  courses  are  from  two  to  four 
years,  and  the  tuition  is  cither  free  or  very  inexpensive. 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  169 

If  you  are  a  high-school  graduate  eager  to  add  to  your 
education  nights  and  at  odd  moments,  and  if  at  the  same 
time  you  can  find  an  expert  contractor  who  will  take  a  real 
interest  in  you,  then  the  apprenticeship  system  has  one 
real  advantage  —  you  will  receive  wages  during  the  three 
or  four  years  you  are  learning  the  trade.  In  whatever  way 
you  may  get  your  preparation,  it  would  be  well  for  you,  in 
order  to  get  into  the  atmosphere  of  your  proposed  life 
work,  to  talk  to  carpenters  about  their  trade  and  their  life, 
to  read  books  on  woodwork  and  carpentry,  and,  if  possible, 
to  borrow  at  least  one  carpenter's  magazine  from  a  carpenter 
friend,  and  later  to  subscribe  for  it. 

Facts  concerning  this  trade  by  a  prominent  carpenter. 
We  print  here  in  part  a  letter  from  Mr.  Frank  Duffy,  Gen- 
eral Secretary  of  the  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and 
Joiners  of  America,  who  gives  us  the  following  expert 
information  concerning  his  trade  : 

One  of  the  greatest  advantages  of  the  carpenter's  trade  is  that  it  is  an 
"  out-of-door "'  occupation,  and,  if  engaged  in  under  proper  conditions, 
is  most  healthful.  It  is  interesting  in  many  ways,  particularly  in  that 
there  are  many  opportunities  to  become  a  skilled  mechanic  in  the  work. 
There  is  much  in  this  vocation  that  tends  to  the  development  of  the 
mental  and  moral  faculties. 

The  salary,  or  wages,  of  the  carpenter  varies  in  different  localities, 
and  the  remuneration  of  the  apprentice  and  first-year  man  varies  like- 
wise. In  the  city  of  Chicago,  which  may  be  taken  as  an  average  case, 
the  wage  for  the  first-year  apprentice  is  $6  per  week,  for  the  second 
year  $7,  for  the  third  year  $8.50,  and  for  the  fourth  year  $11.  In 
Boston,  Mass.,  the  apprentice  receives  $7  per  week  for  the  first  year, 
$8  per  week  for  the  second  year,  and  for  the  third  year  not  less  than 
$10  per  week.  In  Hartford,  Conn.,  journeymen  carpenters  receive  $4 
per  day  for  eight  hours'  work. 

It  may  be  safely  said  that  we  have  more  old  men  in  the  ranks  of  our 
organization  than  any  other  craft.  Being  an  out-of-door  occupation,  it  is 
naturally  healthful,  and  it  is  not  putting  it  too  strongly  to  say  that  the 
average  active  career  is  from  twenty-five  to  forty  years,  or  even  greater. 

Compared  with  other  trades,  the  opportunity  for  advancement  is 
rapid,  three  years  as  a  rule  being  all  that  is  required  to  learn  the  trade 


I/O  OCCUPATIONS 

and  become  a  competent,  skilled  workman.  There  are  many  carpenters 
who,  in  the  course  of  time,  become  contractors  doing  business  for  them- 
selves. We  venture  to  say  this  happens  more  often  in  the  carpenter 
trade  than  in  any  other  manual  occupation. 

A  common-school  education  is  absolutely  necessary,  that  is,  up  to 
and  including  the  eighth  grade.  Of  course  a  high-school  education, 
properly  made  use  of,  is  of  great  assistance,  particularly  in  its  mathe- 
matical department. 

Fine  carpentering  or  cabinetmaking.  i.  Nature  of  the 
work.  Until  within  a  half  century  the  carpenter  not  only 
built  the  wooden  part  of  houses  but  also  made  all  wooden 
utensils,  furniture,  and  even  coffins.  Gradually  these  articles 
came  to  be  made  largely  by  machinery  in  factories,  so  that 
most  of  this  work  has  been  taken  away  from  our  tradesmen. 
However,  there  still  remains  to  the  finer  workman  of  the 
craft  a  portion  of  this  inheritance,  the  making  of  elaborate 
furnishings  and  massive  furniture  for  palatial  residences  and 
of  specially  designed  furnishings  of  wood  for  large  ofifices, 
stores,  and  public  buildings,  and  the  repairing  of  choice 
handmade  furniture. 

In  every  large  village  or  city,  and  connected  with  every 
important  firm  manufacturing  pianos  or  a  high  grade  of 
house  furniture  or  of  w'ood  furnishings  for  office  or  store, 
\'ou  will  find  one  or  more  fine  carpenters  who  are  skilled 
cabinetmakers.  While  their  work  is  with  wood,  it  is  very 
different  in  many  ways  from  the  work  of  the  ordinary  car- 
penter. The  one  is  employed  on  fine  work  indoors,  the 
other  spends  much  of  his  time  on  coarser  work  outdoors. 
The  one  is  a  building  tradesman  engaged  in  constructing 
houses,  the  other  is  a  maker  and  repairer  of  fine  furniture 
for  the  interior  of  such  structures. 

Cabinetmaking  is  allied  to  one  phase  of  the  arts  and 
crafts  work,  furniture  making,  and  perhaps  somewhat  less 
closely  to  pattern  making  (which  is  treated  in  Chapter  X), 
since  both  have  to  do  with  woodworking.  Cabinetmaking 
or  fine  carpentering  is  of  interest  to  boys  who  enjoy  doing 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  1 71 

exact  work,  who  love  beautiful  furniture,  and  who  are  fas- 
cinated with  creating  artistic  forms  from  the  best  grades 
of  wood. 

2.  Remuneration.  While  the  natural  qualifications  and 
special  training  of  the  carpenter  and  the  cabinetmaker  differ 
considerably,  their  remuneration  is  about  the  same,  except 
that  some  few  expert  cabinetmakers  who  are  of  high  artistic 
ability  receive  much  higher  wages.  Again,  the  employment 
of  the  cabinetmaker  may  be  more  regular,  since  it  is  indoor 
work,  and  thus  his  yearly  income  would  be  greater.  Then, 
too,  there  are  some  building  carpenters  who  are  also  expert 
in  fine  workmanship  ;  these  do  odd  jobs  in  cabinetmaking 
and  thus  fill  in  their  spare  time  and  add  considerably  to 
their  income. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Find  out  from  the  carpenters  in  your  neighborhood  whether  any 
of  them  are  willing  to  train  apprentices.  If  so,  what  sort  of  boys  do 
they  want,  and  how  long  will  the  term  of  apprenticeship  be  ? 

2.  If  a  trade  school  is  within  easy  distance  of  your  school,  send  some 
member  of  your  class  there  to  investigate  what  trades  are  taught,  and 
get  the  trade  school's  reasons  for  considering  its  graduates  better  trained 
than  the  apprentices.  If  the  trade  school  is  too  far  away  for  a  visit. 
have  some  member  of  the  class  get  full  information  on  these  points  by 
writing  the  principal. 

3.  What  wages  are  paid  the  carpenters  of  your  acquaintance  ?  How 
many  days  a  year  on  the  average  do  they  work  1 

4.  Find  out  from  some  successful  contractor  how  he  advanced  from 
carpenter  to  contractor.  How  much  extra  work  did  it  require  1  How 
much  additional  study?    What  capital.^ 

5.  Inquire  of  some  prosperous  architect  whether  he  used  carpentry 
as  a  stepping  stone  to  his  present  profession  and  whether  any  of  his 
fellow  architects  advanced  from  this  trade. 

6.  Does  the  increasing  use  of  concrete  and  structural  iron  in  build- 
ing benefit  or  injure  the  carpenter's  trade?  Ask  your  carpenter  and 
contractor  friends  about  this. 

7.  Find  out  all  you  can  about  cabinetmaking  as  plied  in  your 
communitv. 


172  OCCUPATIONS 


THE   MASON 


If  of  tlie  building  tradesmen  you  naturally  think  first 
of  the  carpenter,  you  will  without  doubt  think  next  of 
the  brick  and  stone  mason.  As  many  of  you  know,  this 
tradesman  commonly  builds  chimneys,  walls,  foundations, 
abutments,  etc.  by  laying,  according  to  specified  plans, 
bricks,  stones,  or  cement  blocks  tier  upon  tier  with  mortar 
between.  He  also  constructs  entire  buildings  and  bridges 
of  concrete,  blankets  the  iron  structural  framework  of  sky- 
scrapers with  stone,  cement,  or  brick,  and  does  inside 
plastering  and  outside  stucco  work. 

In  the  country  carpentry  is  of  more  importance  than 
masonry  because  the  woodwork  in  countr}'  buildings  is  the 
most  essential  feature  of  the  construction.  In  the  large 
structural  work  of  the  cities,  however,  it  is  the  mason  who 
has  the  main  part  to  perform,  and  often  he  becomes  the 
general  contractor  for  the  whole  building  operation.  The 
ideal  of  good  masonry  is  a  structure  that  shall  stand  as 
the  backbone  of  the  building,  firm  and  enduring,  its  com- 
paratively large  cost  at  first  insuring  no  further  care  or 
expense. 

Rank  as  a  trade.  Let  us  see  how  this  trade,  which 
numbers  approximately  a  quarter  of  a  million  workers  in 
our  country,  ranks  as  an  occupation  when  compared  with 
Professor  Schneider's  scale  of  measurement. 

1.  It  is  largely  an  open-air  occupation. 

2.  It  provides  a  fairly  well-rounded  physical  dc\elopment. 

3.  The  constant  improvements  in  building  design,  mate- 
rials, and  appliances  require  continuous  mental  development. 

4.  Mental  alertness  is  constantly  required  for  emergencies. 

5.  The  mason  should  have  a  comprehensive  grasp  of 
the  whole  interdependent  scheme  of  the  structure  that  is 
building,  of  his  work  and  that  of  the  iron  structural  worker, 
the  carpenter,  the  plumber,  and  the  electric  wirer,  as  well 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  173 

as    a    ready    comprehension    of    the    owner's    wishes    and 
personal  traits. 

6,  The  conditions  under  which  the  mason  works  on  any 
two  jobs  are  never  aUke. 

7.  The  work  of  the  mason,  if  honestly  wrought  in  each 
minute  and  unseen  part,  is  conducive  to  good  citizenship. 
He  renders  the  community  a  most  essential  service  in  his 
building  operations.  If,  in  order  to  do  an  honest  job  and 
live  up  to  his  agreements,  he  is  equally  willing  to  make  a 
profit  or  to  lose  money,  then  truly  his  work  breeds  in  him  a 
high  quality  of  citizenship.  Like  that  of  the  carpenter,  the 
mason's  trade  ranks  high  in  these  essentials  of  a  vocation. 

Advantages,  preparation,  and  remuneration  in  comparison 
with  those  of  carpentry.  It  requires  at  the  start  but  little 
capital  to  advance  from  journeyman  mason  to  small  con- 
tractor. While  his  employment  is  somewhat  less  regular 
than  that  of  the  carpenter,  his  wages  are  enough  higher  to 
make  up  for  this.  His  opportunities  for  advancement  and  his 
social  standing  are  about  the  same  as  those  of  the  carpenter. 

Young  men  planning  to  enter  either  of  the  two  trades 
should  have  about  the  same  natural  qualifications  —  a  lik- 
ing for  tools,  science,  mathematics,  and  drawing  —  and  the 
same  thorough  high-school  education.  To  be  successful  in 
either  trade  they  must  be  businesslike,  industrious,  ambi- 
tious, not  loafing  at  odd  moments,  but  constantly,  steadily 
forging  ahead. 

The  wages  per  day  for  the  mason  are  a  little  higher,  but 
for  the  year  they  are  about  the  same  as  those  of  the  car- 
penter. From  a  letter  received  from  Mr.  William  Dobson, 
Secretary  of  the  Bricklayers,  Masons,  and  Plasterers'  Inter- 
national Union  of  America,  we  learn  that  the  wage  scale  of 
bricklayers  in  Philadelphia  is  ^5  per  day  and  that  of  stone- 
masons $4.  The  wages  in  the  Middle  West  vary  from 
$3.60  to  $6  a  day,  and  in  the  far  West,  at  San  P^ancisco, 
the    wage    scale   is   $7.     These  wages,   of   course,   are  for 


174  OCCUPATIONS 

journeymen.  The  apprentices  receive  about  the  same  as 
in  the  carpenter's  trade,  starting  at  $i   per  day. 

Actual  work  of  the  apprentice.  The  apprentice  is  taught 
to  make  the  various  kinds  of  mortar  by  mixing  hme  or 
cement  with  sand  or  gravel  and  adding  water.  In  order 
to  make  good  mortar  he  is  trained  to  use  the  right  amount 
of  each  ingredient  and  to  mix  them  together  properly.  He 
carries  this  mortar  as  needed  to  the  journeyman  mason 
whom  he  serves  as  helper,  supplies  him  bricks,  stone  or 
tools,  and  helps  him  in  every  way  possible,  while  he  ob- 
serves closely  how  every  part  of  the  work  is  done. 

It  may  be  months,  however,  before  the  apprentice  is 
trusted  to  lay  any  bricks  or  stone  in  an  actual  structure, 
although  much  depends,  of  course,  upon  how  quick  the 
young  man  is  to  learn  and  how  careful  he  is,  and  upon  the 
willingness  of  the  journeyman  to  have  his  helper  advance 
in  learning  the  trade.  Step  by  step  the  apprentice  advances 
from  mortar  mixer  and  general  helper  to  brick  and  stone 
layer,  at  first  on  very  simple  pieces  of  construction,  up 
through  more  and  more  difficult  and  responsible  parts  of 
the  work,  until  after  three  years,  as  a  rule,  he  becomes  com- 
petent to  build  any  ordinary  structure  of  masonry  and  is 
thenceforth  known  as  a  journeyman  or  master  mason. 

Perhaps  it  cannot  be  stated  too  often  or  too  vigorously 
that  practical  tradesmen  do  not  want  in  their  employ  young 
men  who  are  at  all  superficial  in  their  general  education  or 
in  the  special  training  received  for  their  trade.  These  sen- 
sible men  do  not  care  what  )'ou  know  but  what  )'ou  can  do, 
and  wliat  vou  will  do  when  given  an  actual  job. 

The  contracting  mason.  The  tradesman  who  receives 
wages  is,  of  course,  working  for  another  man.  but  if  he  is 
ambitious  and  self-reliant  he  will,  in  all  probability,  after  a 
few  years  become  his  own  boss  and  himself  hire  workmen. 
.Since  contracting  is  a  business  enterprise,  whether  carried 
on  by  carpenter,  mason,  or  other  tradesman,  it  is  impossible 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  175 

to  state  what  income  one  could  expect,  lie  might  make  a 
few  hundred  dollars  one  year  and  lose  it  all  the  next,  or  he 
might  steadily  add  to  his  capital,  clearing  a  few  hundred 
dollars  from  nearly  every  job  until  he  had  acquired  a  fair- 
sized  capital.  As  it  is,  throughout  our  country  there  are 
many  prosperous  contracting  masons  who  have  accumulated 
considerable  property.  To  the  right  man,  first  as  journey- 
man and  later  as  contractor,  the  mason's  trade  offers  many 
advantages  and  ranks  as  a  desirable  vocation. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Find  out  from  the  contracting  masons  in  your  neighborhood 
whether  any  of  them  would  care  to  take  and  train  an  apprentice.  If 
so,  what  sort  of  boy  do  they  want,  how  long  will  they  expect  him  to 
serve  as  apprentice,  and  what  wages  will  they  pay  him  each  year  ? 

2.  If  a  trade  school  where  masonry  is  taught  is  near  you,  send  for 
a  catalogue  and  note  the  preparation  required  of  those  entering,  and  ex- 
amine closely  the  course  of  study  and  the  plan  of  instruction  as  outlined. 

3.  If  no  such  school  is  near,  write  to  the  Williamson  Free  School 
of  Mechanical  Trades,  Williamson  School  Post  Office,  Pa.,  for  a  cata- 
logue and  their  free  bulletin  on  bricklaying,  or  for  the  free  bulletin  of 
the  School  of  Applied  Industries,  Carnegie  Insdtute,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

4.  Find  out  from  some  successful  contractor  how  he  achieved  his 
present  prosperity.  Did  it  require  much  outside  study  or  extra  work  ? 
How  much  capital  .'* 

5.  Find  out  from  the  contracting  masons  of  your  acquaintance 
whether  the  increasing  use  of  concrete  and  structural  iron  in  building 
benefits  or  injures  the  mason's  trade. 

6.  In  your  community  are  there  more  carpenters  or  more  masons.? 
Can  you  tell  why  ? 

THE    STRUCTURAL  IRONWORKER 

Increasing  demand  for  skyscrapers.  As  land  soars  in 
price,  the  buildings  upon  the  land  must  also  soar  in  height. 
While  this  rule  is  practically  universal,  its  results  are  most 
interesting  on  or  near  the  island  of  Manhattan,  New  York. 


176 


OCCUPATIONS 


In  1909  we  find  completed  the  highest  structure  of  steel 
and  masonry  hitherto  attempted,  the  Metropolitan  Life 
Insurance  Building  on  Madison  Avenue  and  24th  Street, 
New  York  City,  extending  50  stories  above  the  sidewalk. 
Since  then  the  Woolworth  Building  on  Broadway  and 
Barclay  Street,  the  highest  building  in  the  world,  has  been 


»Vl  work  on  a  .sk\.si.  i.ipci 

'J'he  ironworker  can  see  far  below  him  people  on  the  street  and  at  his  right  the 

Hudson   River  and  ocean  liners  at  dock,    (^nly  men  of  steady  nerve  can  work  at 

such  dizzy  heights 

erected,  towering  55  .stories  above  the  street,  or  750  feet 
in  all.  Some  authorities  declare  that  there  is  no  good 
reason  to  suppose  we  have  nearly  reached  the  limit  of 
perpendicular  construction,  and  that  we  may  expect  much 
higher  skyscrapers   in   the   future. 

Carpentry  and  masonry  alone,  however,  would  never 
make  possible  such  colossal  buildings.  The  building's  real 
support    is    an    inner    framework    made    of    steel    bars   and 


THE  BUILDINO  TRADES  177 

plates  riveted  solidly  together  by  the  structural  ironworker. 
While  you  may  never  care  to  enter  the  ranks  of  these  so- 
called  "cowboys  of  the  skies,"  still  they  are  so  necessary 
to  the  building  of  huge  city  blocks,  which  are  becoming 
increasingly  common,  that  we  must  look  somewhat  into 
their  life  work. 

The  work  of  the  structural  iron  builder.  His  task  is  to 
raise  by  means  of  engines  the  steel  trusses,  girders,  and 
beams,  some  weighing  even  20  tons  apiece,  put  them  into 
place,  and  rivet  them  fast  as  parts  of  the  whole  skeleton  of 
the  building. 

Besides  the  frightful  perils  of  this  work,  or  perhaps  to 
add  to  them,  the  men  are  urged  on  with  their  building 
operations  under  tremendous  pressure.  Think  of  a  massive 
granite  and  brick  fireproofed  skyscraper  covering  two  thirds 
of  a  block  being  urged  upward  at  the  rate  of  a  story  a 
week !  But  such  has  been  done.  The  men  work  in  day 
and  night  shifts  so  that  no  time  shall  be  lost ;  for  do  you 
realize  how  great  would  be  the  daily  or  weekly  interest 
on  the  millions  of  dollars  tied  up  in  such  an  enterprise  .-• 
It  is  estimated  that  the  Woolworth  Building  complete  cost 
$15,000,000.  At  5  per  cent  the  annual  interest  on  this 
sum  would  be  $750,000.  What  would  be  the  loss  for  every 
day  wasted  in  completing  this  structure  ?  Naturally,  the 
contractor  and  foremen  urge  on  the  men  to  the  limit  of 
their  speed,  which  means  working  under  a  severe  nervous 
tension  except  at  times  when,  for  the  sport  of  it,  they  vie 
with  each  other  or  workmen  on  neighboring  skyscrapers  in 
litde  trials  of  speed.  To  appreciate  the  terrible  stress  and 
strain  under  which  these  men  labor,  read  "  Skyscrapers 
While  You  Wait,"  by  William  Allen  Johnston  in  Harper s 
Weekly  of  June  11,   19 10. 

Preparation  and  remuneration.  The  qualifications  for  a 
successful  ironworker  are  for  the  most  part  natural  and 
inherent.    He  must  be  sober,  cool,   level-headed,  quick  of 


1/8  OCCUPATIONS 

sense  and  action,  daring,  but  still  cautious.  As  for  educa- 
tion, he  must  understand  working  from  blue  prints  and  know 
something  about  the  mechanics  of  building.  The  graduates 
of  manual-training  high  schools  advance  most  rapidly  to 
the  positions  of  greatest  responsibility  and  pay.  The  new 
recruits,  for  the  most  part,  come  from  the  ranks  of  bridge 
builders,  sailors,  and  circus  men,  and,  after  some  experi- 
ence, these  "  housesmiths "  receive  from  $24  to  S30  a 
week.  The  foremen  get  from  335  to  $5  5  a  week,  but  their 
employment  as  well  as  that  of  their  men  is  somewhat 
irregular. 

Probably  very  few,  if  any,  of  you  will  choose  structural 
ironworking  for  your  vocation  ;  but  since  the  services  of 
these  men  are  so  necessary  in  our  cities,  we  should  at  least 
know  something  about  their  lives,  and  we  should  do  our 
part,  whether  from  within  their  ranks  or  from  the  outside, 
to  have  their  calling  made  as  free  from  danger  as  possible. 
These  men,  like  railroad  employees  and  others  engaged  in 
any  hazardous  occupation,  should  be  urged  (and,  if  neces- 
sary, encouraged  by  reward)  to  practice  "  safety  first,"  and 
then  their  employers  should  be  forced  by  public  sentiment 
and  penal  statute  to  safeguard  in  every  way  possible  their 
building  activities. 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  features  of  the  ironworker's  Ufe  should  you  like?  Which 
should  you  dislike? 

2.  From  your  personal  investigations,  which  trade  should  you  prefer, 
that  of  carpenter,  mason,  or  structural  iron  builder  ?  Explain  your  reasons. 

THE   ]>LUMBER 

Recent  growth  of  this  trade.  While  in  1840  the  trade 
of  plumbing  was  practically  unknown,  to-day  there  are  in 
America  over  100,000  plumbers.  In  i860  there  were  170 
factories  manufacturing  plumbers'  supplies  ;  in    1900  there 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  179 

were  12,050  such  establishments.  In  i860  the  product  of 
the  170  plumbers'  supply  factories  was  valued  at  less  than 
$2,000,000;  in  1900  the  product  of  the  12,050  factories 
was  worth  nearly  $147,000,000,  more  than  seventy  times 
as  much  as  forty  years  previous. 

The  reason  for  this  great  increase  in  the  plumbing  busi- 
ness is  seen  when  we  consider  that  in  no  branch  of  me- 
chanical science  has  there  been  more  noteworthy  progress 
than  in  plumbing,  heating,  and  ventilation,  the  province 
of  the  plumber.  Heating  and  ventilation,  once  regarded 
as  incidental  features  of  building  construction,  are  nowadays 
considered  matters  of  extreme  importance.  Likewise,  an 
intelligent  public  now  appreciates  the  disastrous  results 
from  defective  plumbing,  and  in  order  that  all  sanitary 
work  shall  be  performed  according  to  scientific  principles, 
municipal  regulations  and  ordinances  have  been  quite  gen- 
erally enacted  to  safeguard  the  public  health  by  condemn- 
ing all  plumbing  and  drainage  systems  improperly  installed. 
This  new  order  of  things  has  made  a  technical  education 
necessary  for  the  man  that  hopes  to  hold  a  position  of  any 
prominence  in  the  broad,  intricate  field  of  plumbing.  And 
as  a  result,  plumbing  is  assuming  an  ever  higher  rank  as 
a  trade  fit  for  a  brainy,  technically  trained  man. 

Nature  and  remuneration.  In  his  book  "  What  shall  Our 
Boys  do  for  a  Living,"  Mr.  Charles  F.  Wingate  writes : 

I  would  strongly  advise  young  men  to  become  plumbers.  A  first- 
class  plumber  must  understand  both  the  theory  and  practice  of  sanitary 
science.  He  ranks  with  a  machinist  or  an  engineer.  Within  a  very  few 
years  the  trade  has  been  revolutionized  and  there  is  a  growing  demand 
in  all  parts  of  the  country  for  capable  plumbers.  A  young  man  who  is 
master  of  the  trade  has  a  great  advantage  over  the  ordinary,  ignorant, 
unscrupulous  plumber,  and  should  have  no  difficulty  in  getting  plenty 
to  do. 

Not  only  is  there  a  steady  demand  for  new  buildings  in  all  parts  of 
the  country,  but  repairs  and  alterations  are  also  going  on  continually, 
and  the  plumbers  who  can  give  satisfaction  to  customers  easily  succeed. 


l8o  OCCUPATIONS 

One  of  them  told  me  he  had  not  lost  a  week's  work  in  thirty  years.  He 
said  there  were  four  men  in  his  shop  who  received  fifty  cents  a  day 
extra  because  they  could  follow  plans  and  specifications  correctly,  could 
measure  and  order  exactly  what  materials  were  needed,  were  able  to 
explain  clearly  to  customers  just  why  certain  things  should  be  done,  and 
could  act  with  discretion  in  emergencies.  Such  practical  sagacity  and 
"  gumption "  count  for  much.  The  timid  and  indifferent  workman 
who  blindly  follows  orders  when  he  knows  they  are  wrong  or  need 
to  be  modified  is  the  first  to  be  laid  off  when  work  is  slack. 

Plumbing  is  on  the  whole  healthful  and  mentally  .stimu- 
lating, and  offers  a  good  livelihood  to  sober,  industrious 
men  of  a  mechanical  turn.  Because  of  the  great  variety  of 
conditions  and  often  perplexing  difficulties  under  which 
systems  of  plumbing,  ventilation,  and  heating  must  be  in- 
stalled, the  plumber  requires  much  mechanical  resourceful- 
ness, at  times  amounting  almost  to  inventive  genius.  To 
the  right  sort  of  plumber  there  is  steady  employment,  pay 
equally  as  good  as  that  of  the  carpenter  or  mason,  and  the 
opportunity  of  at  least  steady,  if  not  rapid,  advancement. 
Many  capable  plumbers  have  advanced  to  contractors  and 
dealers  in  plumbers'  supplies,  while  a  few  have  worked 
their  way  up  to  the  position  of  sanitary  engineer. 

Perhaps  the  most  serious  disadvantages  of  the  trade  arc 
living  down  its  bad  repute  in  some  localities  because  of 
former  unscrupulous  plumbers,  and  the  occasional  dirty 
work  to  be  done  in  cellars,  sanitaries,  and  sewers.  Still, 
there  is  disagreeable  work  to  be  done  in  all  occupations  ; 
and  the  plumber  of  to-day  and  to-morrow  will  receive  in- 
creasingly greater  respect  as  he  elevates  liis  trade  by  giving 
to  it  more  brain  and  better  service.  Since  the  province  of 
the  plumber  has  so  much  to  do  with  our  comfort  and 
health,  he  has  it  in  his  power  to  render  the  community  a 
vitally  important  service. 

Apprentices  sixteen  years  of  age  or  older  receive  as  help- 
ers the  first  year  from  $5  to  $63.  week  of  forty-four  to 
forty-eight  hours,  the  second  year  from  $6  to  $S,  and  the 


THE  BUILDING  'J'RADES  l8l 

third  year  $7  to  $10.  Journeymen  receive  from  $3  to  $6 
a  day,  depending  upon  the  man  and  the  prevailing  wages 
in  his  locality. 

Natural  qualifications  and  preparation.  If  you  aspire  to 
become  a  master  plumber,  you  should  be  of  a  mechanical, 
almost  inventive  turn,  and  not  adverse  to  soiled  hands, 
face,  and  clothing,  or  dirty  work  that  may  interest  or  ab- 
sorb you.  You  must  not  shrink  from  dimly  lighted,  ill- 
smelling  damp  places  if  your  work  of  properly  installing 
a  system  of  heating  or  of  sanitation  leads  you  there.  As 
with  the  prospective  carpenter  or  mason,  you  should  have 
a  liking  for  geometry,  science,  and  drawing,  and,  if  possi- 
ble, should  complete  a  high-school  education  before  begin- 
ning to  learn  the  plumber's  trade.  Here  also  you  should 
emphasize  the  mathematics,  science  (especially  physics  and 
physiology),  mechanical  drawing,  and  English  composition. 
If  you  talk  with  successful  plumbers  about  your  education, 
they  will  tell  you  how  easily  you  can  waste  your  time  in 
school  by  skimming  the  top  of  many  polite  subjects  instead 
of  going  to  the  bottom  of  a  few  related  practical  subjects 
and  regularly  applying  the  facts  learned  to  everyday  things. 
They  will  also  strongly  advise  you  to  invest  your  spare 
time  after  school  and  during  vacations  in  some  business- 
like pursuit,  preferably  connected  with  some  mechanical  or 
building  activity. 

It  is  well  to  try  out  your  supposed  liking  for  plumbing  or 
any  other  occupation  by  doing,  if  possible,  some  work  at  odd 
times  in  the  trade  itself.  There  are  to-day  many  good  trade 
schools  where  plumbing  is  taught  on  real  contract  jobs  in 
two-year  and  three-year  courses.  Enroll  in  the  one  most  con- 
venient, and  consider  yourself  a  real  employee,  ever  alert  to 
serve  your  employer  to  best  advantage  ;  and  after  completing 
the  course  in  earnest  fashion,  you  will  soon  be  receiving  a 
journeyman's  wages  and  be  well  on  the  way  to  becoming  a 
prosperous  contractor  or  a  successful  sanitary  engineer. 


1 82  OCCUPATIONS 


EXERCISES 


1.  If  a  trade  school  where  plumbing  is  taught  is  near  you,  send 
some  member  of  the  class  who  is  interested  in  this  trade  to  investigate 
the  course  and  the  kind  of  instruction,  the  sort  of  boys  and  instructors, 
and  report  fully  to  the  class. 

2.  Let  some  member  of  the  class  write  for  a  free  catalogue  to  the 
State  Trade  School  at  Bridgeport,  Conn.,  or  at  New  Britain,  Conn., 
or  for  the  free  bulletin  of  the  School  of  Applied  Industries,  Carnegie 
Institute,  Pittsburgh,  Pa.,  or  for  the  free  announcement  of  courses  in 
plumbing,  heating,  and  ventilation  of  the  International  Correspondence 
Schools,  Scranton,  Pa. 

3.  Find  out  from  some  successful  contracting  plumber  what  general 
education  and  what  special  preparation  he  considers  best  for  a  boy  who 
intends  to  become  a  plumber.  What  sort  of  boys  would  he  think  best 
adapted  to  learn  his  trade.'' 

4.  What  wages  are  paid  the  journeymen  plumbers  of  your  acquaint- 
ance?   How  many  days'  work  a  year  do  they  average.'' 

5.  Which  of  the  building  trades  in  your  community  seems  to  be  the 
most  prosperous .''    Can  you  explain  the  reason  ? 

THE   PRACTICAL  ELECTRICIAN 

In  this  day  of  electric  lights  in  practically  all  modern 
buildings  and  of  electric  power  in  many  blocks  and  facto- 
ries, there  is  a  great  demand  for  well-trained  electricians. 
There  are  many  kinds  of  electrical  workers,  but  here  we 
shall  treat  only  the  one  that  is  closely  allied  to  the  building 
tradesmen,  the  one  who  wires  our  buildings  and  in.stalls  the 
lights  and,  if  desired,  electric  motors  and  heating  equipment. 
Because  of  the  great  danger  of  fire  from  defective  wiring  of 
buildings,  there  is  a  code  of  strict  rules  made  out  by  the 
National  Fire  Protection  Association  which  in  many  states 
the  electrician  must  observe. 

The  prospective  electrician  requires  a  thorough  technical 
training  as  well  as  much  practical  experience  gained  under 
skilled  instructors  in  installing  and  wiring  for  bells,  annun- 
ciators, arc  and  incandescent  lights,  motors,  etc.  before  he 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  183 

can  start  as  an  independent  journeyman.  For  many  of  us 
the  service  of  this  tradesman  is  as  necessary  to  our  comfort 
evenings  as  the  hght  of  the  sun  is  in  the  daytime.  Because 
of  the  conveniences  in  our  homes  provided  by  the  practical 
electrician,  he  easily  deserves  in  our  estimation  a  place  by 
the  side  of  the  plumber. 

Natural  qualifications  and  preparation.  If  you  think  of 
becoming  a  practical  electrician,  one  who  understands  thor- 
oughly the  work  of  wiring  and  installing  electric  lighting 
and  power,  you  should  first  of  all  have  an  absorbing  inter- 
est in  electrical  devices  of  all  kinds.  This  includes,  of 
course,  a  mechanical  bent  and  some  mechanical  ability. 

In  your  high-school  course  you  would  naturally  specialize 
in  mathematics,  mechanical  and  architectural  drawing,  and 
in  physics,  especially  magnetism  and  electricity.  While  at- 
tending high  school  and  after  graduation  it  would  be  well 
if  you  could  serve  for  a  time  as  helper  to  a  local  electrician 
in  order  to  get  in  touch  with  the  practical  side.  Next,  a 
two-year  or  three-year  course  in  a  good  trade  school  would 
fit  you  as  a  journeyman.  To  the  studious,  persevering  young 
man  the  trade  of  practical  electrician  may  serve  as  a  stepping 
stone  to  the  profession  of  electrical  engineer,  one  of  the 
most  attractive  in  the  engineering  field. 

Remuneration.  Throughout  the  United  States  helpers 
and  apprentices  are  paid  from  $1  to  $3  a  day,  and  as  high 
as  $4  in  certain  cities.  Journeymen  receive  from  $2.50  to 
$6  a  day,  the  highest  wages  being  paid  in  Illinois,  New 
York,  and  Massachusetts.  Quite  often  the  successful  elec- 
trician conducts  an  electrical  hardware  store  in  connection 
with  his  contracting  business,  and  thus  adds  to  his  income. 
Of  all  the  trades  connected  with  building  operations,  that 
of  practical  electrician  is  to-day  one  of  the  most  attractive. 
It  might  be  added  that  this  branch  of  electrical  work  is 
as  healthful  as  any  of  the  other  building  trades  and  as  free 
from  accidents. 


i84  OCCUPATIONS 

EXERCISES 

1.  In  your  locality  investigate  and  compare  the  trade  of  practical 
electrician  with  those  of  carpenter,  mason,  and  plumber.  Which  of  the 
four  should  you  prefer  ?    Why  ? 

2.  In  what  ways  would  you  consider  the  work  of  the  electrician  who 
wires  houses,  blocks,  and  factories  for  light  and  possibly  power  more 
desirable  than  that  of  the  linemen  electricians  ? 

3.  Do  you  know  any  practical  electrician  who  has  become  a  success- 
ful electrical  contractor  and  dealer  in  electrical  supplies  or  who  has  be- 
come a  successful  electrical  engineer?  In  either  case,  inquire  how  he 
prepared  himself  as  journeyman,  and  how  he  advanced  to  his  present 
position. 

THE    PAINTER    AND    DECORATOR 

The  architect  may  plan  a  new  house  ;  the  builchng  con- 
tractor and  his  assistants  may  build  and  equip  it  with  mod- 
ern conveniences  ;  but  for  every  house  that  in  any  given 
year  is  so  erected  and  equipped,  there  are  thousands  that 
are  redecorated  both  inside  and  out.  In  large  measure  the 
architect  and  builders  make  the  building,  but  the  decorators 
make  the  home.  How  large  a  part  of  our  comfort  and 
happiness  depends  upon  the  aesthetic  satisfaction  received 
through  the  sense  of  sight !  Is  it  not  a  reflection  upon  our 
people  that  of  the  trades  centered  about  the  construction 
and  finishing  of  our  homes,  the  painting  and  decorating 
trade,  numbering  in  America  a  third  of  a  million  men,  is 
the  poorest  paid,  the  most  hazardous  on  account  of  disease, 
and  requires  the  least  preparatory  education  ? 

Training.  In  painting  and  decorating  a  home  or  other 
building,  how  essential  that  the  master  decorator  should  be 
well  educated,  cultured,  and  well  grounded  in  the  technique 
of  his  art !  So,  while  the  ordinary  painter  and  paper  hanger 
has  been  getting  along  without  even  a  high-school  education 
or  the  special  pref^aration  for  his  trade  gained  from  a  trade 
school  or  from  a  full   term  as  apprentice,  it  seemed  a  most 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  185 

auspicious  step  forward  when  Columbia  University  recently 
dignified  the  study  of  interior  decoration  as  a  profession  by 
according  it  a  place  in  the  curriculum  by  the  side  of  archi- 
tecture, engineering,  law,  and  medicine. 

Columbia  has  done  more.  Recognizing  the  fact  that 
many  prospective  or  actual  decorators  could  not  afford  the 
time  or  money  for  a  college  course  in  the  science  and  art 
of  decoration,  this  great  university  is  offering  special  courses 
for  tradesmen,  shorter  and  more  elementary,  both  for  day 
and  evening  classes.  We  shall  all  welcome  the  day  when 
more  universities  will  follow  the  example  of  Columbia,  and 
when  every  city  and  large  community  will  have  its  experts  in 
house  painting  and  decoration,  specially  qualified  as  master 
tradesmen  by  a  thorough  preparation  received  in  a  university 
art  school  or  in  a  good  trade  school. 

General  conditions  of  the  trade.  To  come  nearer  to  pres- 
ent conditions  of  the  trade,  however,  let  us  read  in  part  what 
Mr.  J.  C.  Skemp,  Secretary  of  the  Brotherhood  of  Painters, 
Decorators,  and  Paper  Hangers  of  America,  recently  wrote 
in  answer  to  questions  concerning  his  trade. 

The  most  serious  disadvantage  of  this  trade  is  lack  of  steady  em- 
ployment, as  many  painters  and  paper  hangers  lose  considerable  time 
through  the  winter  months  during  the  dull  season. 

The  wages  of  apprentices  are  usually  about  $3  per  week  when  they 
begin  learning  the  trade.  The  salary  of  competent  mechanics  averages 
$4  per  working  day  of  eight  hours. 

The  demand  for  regular  employment  is  better  in  large  than  in  small 
cities  and  painters  as  a  rule  average  about  nine  or  ten  months  steady 
work  during  the  year.  The  average  active  career  of  this  vocation  is 
about  twenty-five  years.    The  opportunity  for  advancement  is  rapid. 

No  special  qualifications  are  required  except  for  decorator.  Decora- 
tors should  have  a  natural  aptitude  for  drawing,  and  many  have  become 
experts  through  lessons  obtained  by  correspondence  courses.  No  great 
amount  of  general  education  is  required,  although  a  general  knowledge 
of  minerals  and  painting  materials  is  beneficial.  In  some  cities,  espe- 
cially in  Chicago,  schools  have  been  established  by  this  brotherhood  for 
teaching  apprentice  boys  the  trade  of  decorating  and  paper  hanging. 


1 86  OCCUPATIONS 

Disadvantages.  To  suggest  some  of  the  diseases  incident 
to  painting,  a  quotation  from  the  July,  191 3,  number  of  TJie 
Painter  and  Decorator  will  perhaps  best  serve  our  purpose  : 

Men  engaged  in  the  painting  trade  come  into  contact  with  materials 
some  of  which  are  well  known  to  be  of  a  dangerous  character  unless 
used  with  intelligence.  It  has  been  shown  that  various  vehicles  such  as 
turpentine,  china-wood  oil  and  other  more  volatile  substances  give  off 
emanations  which  may  produce  ill  effects  unless  there  is  adequate  ven- 
tilation.   Therefore  the  latter  should  be  insisted  upon. 

The  use  of  lead  in  painting  is  so  universal  and  of  such  ancient  date 
that  painters  usually  know  of  its  dangers  and  how  to  minimize  them.  It 
has  long  been  realized  that  personal  cleanliness  is  absolutely  necessary 
and  that  this  eliminates  much  of  the  danger.  There  is  a  phase  of  the 
painter's  work,  however,  that  involves  danger  even  to  the  man  of  per- 
fectly cleanly  habits.  This  is  the  process  of  sandpapering  down  paint 
work.  Here  the  fine  dust  may  get  into  a  man's  lungs  and  stomach  and 
do  great  damage  to  his  health. 

Dr.  Alice  Hamilton,  an  agent  of  the  United  States  Government,  has 
suggested  a  common-sense  method  of  lessening  this,  the  greatest  danger 
to  painters  from  the  use  of  white  lead.  She  has  found  that  the  use  of 
a  volatile  oil  for  moistening  the  sandpaper  will  prevent  largely  the  dust 
flying.  This  oil  is  said  to  evaporate  and  leave  the  surface  in  perfect 
condition  to  receive  the  paint. 

A  brighter  outlook.  We  are  glad  to  see  that  the  dangers 
of  disease  from  painting  and  decorating  are  being  inves- 
tigated and  as  fast  as  possible  prevented,  for  nearly  all  of 
them  are  preventable.  It  is  a  most  hopeful  sign  that 
courses  of  instruction  in  this  trade,  which  has  the  power 
of  making  our  homes  beautiful  and  delightful,  are  being 
established ;  and  doubtless  before  long  there  will  be  many 
excellent  courses  of  this  sort  throughout  the  country.  Then 
the  public  must  appreciate  more  fully  the  valuable  service 
rendered  by  the  decorator,  and,  after  providing  adequately 
for  his  health  and  demanding  an  increasingly  higher  grade  of 
work,  it  should  pay  him  more  liberally,  or  more  fairly,  for  his 
services.  We  hope  that  with  these  improvements  and  advan- 
tages the  trade  of  painter  and  decorator  will  soon  take  its 
rightful  place  near  the  head  of  the  building  and  allied  trades. 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  187 

EXERCISES 

1.  Do  the  painters  and  decorators  in  your  town  or  city  conduct,  in 
connection  with  their  trade,  stores  equipped  with  supplies  for  painters, 
paper  hangers,  etc.  ? 

2.  Do  the  painters  and  decorators  in  your  locality  lose  more  days  a 
year  than  the  other  building  tradesmen? 

3.  How  do  painters  and  decorators  compare  in  health  with  these 
other  tradesmen? 

4.  Why  do  painters  and  paper  hangers  receive  lower  wages  than 
the  other  tradesmen  so  far  studied? 

5.  Do  you  think  this  trade  will  ever  rank  as  high  as  that  of  carpenter 
or  mason  ?    Give  your  reasons. 

6.  Do  you  consider  the  artistic  decorating  of  a  home  or  public  building 
of  much  worth  ?    Explain  why. 


THE  BUILDING  CONTRACTOR 

To  be  at  the  head  of  a  large  factory,  a  retail  store,  a  rail- 
road, or  an  institution  ;  to  be  at  the  head  of  anything  worth 
while ;  to  be  able  to  do  things  and  to  direct  others  to  exe- 
cute plans  —  this  rightly  appeals  to  young  America.  In  the 
building  activities  there  is  for  every  big  job  such  a  head, 
who  directs  the  work  of  construction  and  has  charge  of  all 
its  details. 

Nature  of  the  work.  When  he  has  received  from  the 
owner  the  contract  to  construct  a  certain  building,  after 
a  definite  plan,  to  cost  a  set  amount  of  money,  then  the 
building  contractor,  as  executive  in  charge  of  the  job,  has 
the  excavation  dug,  the  foundations  laid,  the  superstructure 
reared,  the  building  roofed  and  inclosed,  and  the  interior 
finished  and  equipped.  In  very  truth,  he  is  the  real  builder  ; 
and  as  the  building  grows  from  day  to  day  until  it  becomes 
perfect  in  its  every  detail  and  he  turns  it  over  to  the 
owner,  he  must  feel  much  satisfaction  in  creating  from 
materials,  with  the  help  of  his  men,  a  magnificent  house 
or  a  substantial  block. 


1 88  OCCUPATIONS 

Such  a  building  contractor  is  a  business  man  rather  than 
a  tradesman,  although  he  must  understand  his  own  trade 
well  and  all  the  other  trades  cooperating  on  the  work.  A 
successful  contractor,  it  is  seen,  is  much  more  than  a  jour- 
neyman carpenter  or  mason  ;  he  has  to  be  proficient  in  all 


The  building  contractor  begins  work 

The  foundations  here  shown  rest  upon  soHd  rock,  extending  to  an  average  depth  of 
85  feet  below  the  street  curb.  Upon  this  was  erected  the  structural  steel  frame- 
work shown  in  the  frontispiece,  35,000  tons  of  metal  held  together  by  over  a 
million  rivets  and  extending  above  the  street  for  40  stories.  To  this  structure 
were  then  added  19,000,000  bricks,  85,000  barrels  of  cement,  5000  windows,  and 
48  elevators.  It  is  now  considered  the  finest  office  building  in  the  world,  able  to 
house  in  comfort  over  15,000  persons 

the  building  trades,  accurate  in  computing  tlie  cost  of  the 
materials  and  labor  required,  skillful  in  buying  the  materials 
and  in  selecting  his  workmen,  and  forceful  and  tactful  in 
pushing  ff)rward  the  work  so  as  to  avoid  unnecessary  delays, 
which  mean  loss  of  money. 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  1 89 

Advancement  and  remuneration.  Some  excellent  jour- 
neymen carpenters  and  masons  do  not  have  the  education 
or  the  business  ability  to  be  building  contractors.  But 
since  at  the  top  of  the  ladder  is  the  successful  building 
contractor,  is  it  not  worth  the  while  of  every  prospective 
carpenter  or  mason  to  see  to  it  that  he  secure  sufficient 
education,  that  he  be  not  satisfied  with  a  mastery  of  his 
own  trade  merely  but  that  he  extend  his  knowledge  to 
cover  the  other  trades  involved  in  construction  work,  the 
cost  of  building  materials,  how  to  buy  most  advantageously, 
how  to  get  on  well  with  men,  and  how  best  to  secure  rapid 
construction  work  ? 

Such  is  the  situation.  As  for  the  remuneration,  the  ex- 
pert, businesslike  contractor  has  excellent  opportunities  for 
gaining  not  only  a  good  living  but  even  a  fair  degree  of 
wealth,  and  many  are  the  prosperous  building  contractors 
that  can  be  found  in  almost  any  section  of  our  country. 
Besides  this,  what  keen  satisfaction  must  this  building 
executive  feel  when  he  contemplates  this  beautiful  house, 
that  magnificent  church,  yonder  substantial  block  that  he 
conscientiously  and  successfully  brought  into  existence  from 
plans,  specifications,  materials,  and  the  help  of  mechanical 
forces  and  his  trusty  men  ! 

Relation  to  architect.  Sometimes  on  the  smaller  jobs 
the  building  contractor  selects  or  adapts  from  magazines  or 
books  the  plans  and  specifications  from  which  to  build,  or 
he  may  contract  to  duplicate  some  actual  building  selected 
by  the  owner.  But  on  all  the  more  important  building  con- 
tracts to-day  there  is  employed  an  architect  who  plans  and 
designs  the  building  in  all  its  parts  inside  and  outside  to  suit 
the  requirements  and  desires  of  the  owner,  and  who  specifies 
that  the  contractor  execute  in  detail  what  materials  are  to 
be  used  and  what  methods  of  construction  employed.  The 
architect  also  oversees  regularly  the  construction  as  it  pro- 
ceeds ;    and  should  there  be  any   differences   between   the 


I90  OCCUPATIONS 

contractor  and  the  owner  he  is  the  deciding  authority. 
However,  as  the  architect  is  not  considered  a  tradesman 
but  a  member  of  the  engineering  profession,  we  shall  not 
discuss  him  further  now,  but  study  his  vocation  in  some 
detail  in  Chapter  XI,  The  Engineering  Professions. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Which  should  give  a  man  greater  satisfaction  —  to  work  as  a 
journeyman  carpenter  or  mason,  as  a  subcontractor,  or  as  a  building 
contractor?   Which  should  pay  the  best? 

2.  Learn  from  your  acquaintances  who  are  successful  contractors 
how  they  would  advise  a  young  man  to  prepare  himself  to  become  a 
prosperous  contractor. 

3.  Why  should  a  contractor  understand  at  least  the  rudiments  of 
architecture  ? 

4.  What  business  subjects  do  you  think  he  should  master?  What 
mathematics?  What  sciences ?  What  drawing? 

THE  JANITOR 

Importance  of  the  work.  Suppose  a  rich  man  had  his 
grounds  laid  out  beautifully  by  a  landscape  gardener  and 
the  lawns  and  plants  brought  to  a  condition  of  perfect 
growth  and  harmony,  how  long  would  his  premises  delight 
the  eyes  if  they  were  left  neglected  or  in  charge  of  an 
ignorant  caretaker  ?  Did  you  ever  see  a  rich  man  turn  over 
his  grounds  to  the  care  of  one  untrained  in  such  work  ?  If 
the  value  of  schoolhouses  in  the  United  States  to-day  is 
over  $1,000,000,000,  and  that  of  other  public  buildings  is, 
let  us  assume,  at  least  ten  times  as  much,  what  is  the 
wisdom  of  spending  these  billions  of  wealth  in  erecting 
beautiful,  substantial  structures,  planned  to  give  abundant 
service  and  comfort  to  millions  of  human  beings,  and  then 
turning  them  over  to  the  care  of  well-meaning  but  untrained 
janitors  ?  \\' hy  does  the  rich  man  use  common  sense  in 
securing  proper  care  for  his  gn^unds,  while  the  great  public 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES 


191 


uses  none  in  securing  untrained,  unskilled  care  for  its  valu- 
able public  buildings  ?  Not  only  are  they  worth  billions  of 
dollars,  but  in  them  practically  all  of  our  youth  and  many 
of  our  adults  live  most  of  their  waking  hours. 

The  standard  of  healthfulness  in  schoolhouses  and  other 
public  buildings  should  be  that  found  in  the  best-kept 
homes.    But  our  public  buildings  are  cared  for  by  ordinary 


An  insurance  company's  home  office 

It  is  in  caring  for  such  buildings  as  this  that  janitor  work  reaches  a  high  degree  of 

perfection.    The  heating,  Hghting,  ventilating,  and  sanitary  arrangements  are  fully 

organized  under  the  building  superintendent,  and  his  position  is  rightly  regarded  as 

one  of  the  most  important  in  the  company's  staff 

unskilled  working  men  without  any  training  in  health  or 
housekeeping  methods.  The  State  Commissioner  of  Health 
of  Pennsylvania  inspected  3572  schools  during  the  year 
1911-1912  and  found  more  than  five  sixths  of  them  (3036) 
unsanitary.  But  the  schools  in  Pennsylvania  are  no  worse 
than  those  in  other  states.  Recent  studies  of  schoolhouse 
air  show  relative  humidity  often  nearer  20  per  cent  (which 
is  more  arid  than  in  deserts  where  vegetation  never  grows) 
than  the  normal  40-70  per  cent ;  temperatures  more  often 


192  OCCUPATIONS 

in  the  /o's  and  8o's  (which  lower  vitaHty  and  promote 
tuberculosis  and  other  diseases  with  fearful  rapidity)  than 
in  the  healthful  6o's  ;  carbon  dioxide,  indicating  stagnant, 
germ-filled  air,  more  often  measuring  20  parts  in  10,000 
than  the  normal  4  in  10,000,  etc. 

Necessity  of  special  training.  We  agree  heartily  with 
Dr.  Helen  C,  Putnam  in  her  book  "  School  Janitors, 
Mothers,  and  Health,"  when  she  says  : 

The  training  and  testing  of  caretakers  of  school  premises  is  as  log- 
ical and  imperative  a  need  as  is  that  of  teachers,  nurses,  librarians,  drug 
clerks ;  or  of  housekeepers,  cooks,  and  other  domestic  workers,  rapidly 
coming  to  pass.  It  is  a  vital  factor  in  problems  of  school  hygiene,  and 
is  likely  to  be  the  most  effective  means  of  educating  other  school  officers 
in  sanitation.  Salaries  paid  janitors  in  large  cities,  ranging  from  $700 
to  $2500  and  $3000,  average  higher  than  salaries  of  teachers,  post-office 
employees,  or  assistant  librarians,  the  formalities  of  whose  appointments 
are  well  known. 

Among  the  teachers  of  janitors  it  is  desirable  to  include  instructors 
from  schools  for  nurses  and  domestic  science,  as  the  service  required 
is  technical  and  practical,  to  be  held  to  definite  standards  which  thus 
far  have  been  demonstrated  in  these  two  lines  of  education.  In  addi- 
tion, health  officers,  biologists,  and  instructors  in  physics  and  chemis- 
try can  be  of  service  in  creating  standards  and  testing  results.  It  is 
also  important  to  secure  the  cooperation  of  these  men  and  women  in 
establishing  classes  for  janitors  on  a  permanent  basis  in  the  right 
educational  institutions. 

Every  large  city  has  several  hundred  janitors,  not  of  schools  alone, 
but  of  apartment  houses,  office  buildings,  theaters,  churches,  and  enter- 
tainment halls;  also  Pullman  porters,  train  and  street-car  conductors, 
hotel  managers.  With  different  grades  of  examination  as  in  the  United 
States  postal  service,  this  course  can  be  adapted  to  each  form  of  cus- 
todial care. 

We  are  seriously  afflicted  by  unsanitary  public  buildings  (including 
schools)  and  conveyances.  The  public  good  demands  that  educational 
and  health  standards  be  introduced  in  these  important  occupations  that 
have  been  mentioned. 

Employment  of  trained  janitors.  A  few  cities  already 
have  placed  janitors  under  the  civil  service,  where  examina- 
tions are  required  before  appointment.    Without  doubt  very 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  193 

many  cities  and  quite  likely  many  of  our  states  will  in  the 
near  future  require  of  prospective  janitors  of  schools  and 
other  public  buildings  training  not  only  in  caring  for  a 
boiler  and  running  an  elevator  but  also  in  proper  heat- 
ing, ventilation,  and  sanitation  of  buildings,  and  will  then 
issue  licenses  and  give  appointments  only  to  those  found 
proficient. 

Attractive  possibilities  of  this  occupation.  At  any  rate, 
now  that  so  many  public  buildings  are  palatial,  have  pneu- 
matic cleaning  appliances  so  that  sweeping  and  dust  are 
practically  eliminated,  and  provide  many  other  conveniences 
for  caretaking,  and  with  the  increasingly  attractive  salaries 
paid  the  janitors,  would  it  not  be  worth  while  for  some  of 
our  boys  to  consider  seriously  this  vocation  ?  Of  course  we 
do  not  mean  such  work  as  ordinary  janitors  are  obliged  to 
perform  in  poorly  equipped  buildings,  where  they  must  work 
nights,  Sundays,  and  holidays  surrounded  and  permeated 
with  millions  of  dust  particles.  The  janitor  of  the  future 
will  become  more  and  more  the  sanitary  engineer  of  a  public 
building,  less  and  less  the  sweeper  and  duster ;  he  will  be 
provided  with  all  proper  machinery  and  appliances  for  his 
work,  so  that  it  will  not  continue  unhealthful ;  and  he  will 
surely  occupy  an  ever  higher  social  plane  as  he  becomes 
better  trained  and  serves  the  public  more  scientifically. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Are  the  janitors  of  your  school  and  other  local  public  buildings 
appointed  because  of  their  fitness  or  because  of  their  political  friend 
ships  ?  Talk  over  with  your  father  and  mother  what  the  qualifications 
of  a  janitor  should  be  and  how  he  should  receive  his  appointment. 

2.  Is  the  work  of  the  janitor  in  the  public  schools  and  public  build- 
ings in  your  locality  as  a  rule  very  hard?  Are  the  hours  long?  Is 
the  work  dusty  and  otherwise  unhealthful,  or  the  contrary?  If  it  is  not 
in  the  main  free  from  dust  and  healthful,  how  could  it  be  made  so? 

3.  How  can  a  janitor  secure  right  conditions  of  air?  What  is  the 
teacher's  part  in  this  and  in  having  proper  light? 


194  OCCUPATIONS 

4.  Tuberculosis  is  an  indoor  disease  which  spreads  most  readily  in 
poorly  lighted  public  buildings  which  have  overheated,  poorly  ventilated 
and  overdry  air.  Can  your  class  help  in  any  way  to  combat  this  disease 
in  your  locality  or  your  state  ? 

5.  The  open-air  and  the  open-window  schools  are  more  sanitary  than 
those  with  closed  windows  and  the  most  perfect  heating  and  ventilating 
systems  known.  Have  you  investigated  any  open-air  schools  ?  Can  you 
help  to  secure  them  in  your  town  or  city  ? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Adams,  Joseph  H.  Harper's  Electricity  Book  for  Boys.  Harper  and 
Brothers,  New  York.    $1.75. 

Arrowsmith,  James.  The  Paper  Hanger's  Companion.  William  T. 
Comstock  Company,  New  York.    $1.00. 

Black,  John.  Masonry.  Sampson  Publishing  Company,  Boston. 
25  cents 

Clow,  George  B.  Practical  Up-to-date  Plumbing.  Hodgson  Book 
Company,  Chicago.    $1.50. 

Daxa,  W.  S.  B.  a  Primer  of  Architectural  Drawing  for  Young  Students. 
William  T.  Comstock  Company,  New  York.    $1.25. 

Hasluck,  Paul  N.  Practical  Graining  and  Marbling.  The  Painters 
Magazine  Publishing  Company,  William  .St.,  New  York.    5i.oo. 

Hasluck,  Paul  N.  Practical  Painters'  Work.  William  T.  Comstock 
Company,  New  York.    $1.00. 

Hodgsox,  Fred  T.  Modern  Carpentry.  Hodgson  Book  Company, 
Chicago.    $1.00. 

Hodgson,  F.  T.  Practical  Bricklaying  Self-taught.  Practical  Stone- 
masonry  Self-taught.    Hodgson  Book  Company,  Chicago.    $1.50. 

Jarvls,  Henry.  The  Beginners  Guide  to  Carpentry.  Sampson  Pub- 
lishing Company,  Boston.    50  cents. 

Marsh.-\ll,  p.  Electric  Lighting  for  Amateurs.  Sampson  I'ul^lishing 
Company,  Boston.    25  cents. 

Pratt,  Herbert.  Wiring  a  House.  Norman  W.  Henley  Publishing 
Company,  New  York.    25  cents. 

Putnam,  Dr.  Helen  C.  School  Janitors,  Mothers  and  Health. 
American  Academy  of  Medicine  Press,  Easton,  Pa.    $1.00. 

Radford,  William  A.  Cement  Houses  and  how  to  Build  them.  William 
T.  Comstock  Publishing  Company,  New  York.    $1.00. 

Sloaxe.  T.  O'Conor.  How  to  become  a  Successful  Electrician.  Nor- 
man W.  Henley  Publishing  Company,  New  York.    ,*i.oo. 


THE  BUILDING  TRADES  I95 

Two  free  bulletins  issued  by  the  Printing  Department,  City  of  Boston, 
Mass.  These  are  Rules  for  Janitors,  Engineers,  and  Matrons,  and 
School  Document  No.  9,  191 2,  Report  of  Special  Committee  on 
School  Janitors'  Salaries. 

Periodicals 

Architecture  and  Building.  Monthly.  William  T.  Comstock  Company, 
Buildings  and  Building  Management.    New  York.    $2.00  per  year. 

Electrician  and  Mechanic.  Monthly.  Sampson  Publishing  Company, 
Boston.    $1.50  per  year. 

Iron  Age.  Monthly.  Iron  Age  Publishing  Company,  New  York.  $1.00 
per  year. 

Metal  Worker^  Plumber  and  Steatn  Fitter.  Weekly.  David  Williams 
Company,  New  York.    52.00  per  year. 

Popular  Electricity  Magazine.  Monthly.  Popular  Electricity  Publish- 
ing Company,  Chicago.    $1.50  per  year. 

The  Bricklayers  and  Masons  Journal.  23  Duane  St.,  New  York. 
75  cents  per  year. 

The  Building  Age.  Monthly.  David  Williams  Company,  New  York. 
$  r  .00  per  year. 

The  Carpenter.  Monthly.  United  Brotherhood  of  Carpenters  and 
Joiners  of  America,  Indianapolis,  Ind.    $1.00  per  year. 

The  Painter  and  Decorator.  Monthly.  Brotherhood  of  Painters,  Deco- 
rators and  Paper  Hangers  of  America,  La  Fayette,  Ind.  Si. 00  per 
year. 

The  Painters  Magazine.  Monthly.  The  Painters  Magazine  Publishing 
Company,  William  St.,  New  York.    $1.50  per  year. 


CHAPTER  X 

MACHINE  AND   RELATED  TRADES 

He  that  hath  a  trade,  hath  an  estate.  —  Benjamin  Franklin 

Industry  is  thrown  away  if  one  cannot  infuse  a  high  degree  of  skill 
into  his  work.  —  Hamilton  W.  Mahie 

In  point  of  history  the  smith  with  his  brawny  arms  as 
strong  as  iron  bands  was  the  first  of  mechanics.  In  an- 
cient times  he  made  all  the  implements  of  agriculture,  of 
transportation,  of  the  home  (including  musical  instruments) 
of  war,  etc.  In  fact,  he  was  practically  the  sole  manufac- 
turer of  all  articles  in  which  metal  was  wholly  or  partly  used. 
How  simple  was  the  life  of  people  then,  how  inclusive  and 
still  not  overcomplex  were  his  duties  !  Now  all  has  been 
changed,  and  scores  of  tradesmen  have  divided  among 
themselves  the  complex  kinds  of  work  inherited  from  the 
simple  smith  of  old. 

Leaving  out  the  many  variations  of  the  mechanic  trades 
as  found  in  thousands  of  manufacturing  plants,  let  us  sur- 
vey the  following  general  scheme  of  work  of  the  leading 
machine  and  allied  trades  : 

GENERAL  SCHEME  OF  WORK  OF  THE  MACHINE  AND 
ALLIED  TRADESMEN 

A  blacksmith  shoes  horses,  sells  and  repairs  wagons,  sleighs,  and 
farm  implements,  and  repairs  tools,  machines,  etc.,  and  sometimes  even 
automobile  trucks  and  cars. 

Machine-shop  tradesmen,  i .  The  machinist  makes,  assembles,  and 
repairs  tools,  implements,  and  machines,  and  installs  systems  of 
machinery. 

196 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES 


197 


2.  A  draftsman  plans  the  details  of  the  tool,  machine,  or  imple- 
ment to  be  made,  and  then  places  on  paper  working  drawings  of  the 
desired  mechanism,  with  full  directions  of  design  and  dimensions  for 
the  machinist  to  execute. 

3.  A  designer  is  an  expert  draftsman  whose  work  is  to  solve  in 
detail  difficult  or  intricate  problems  of  the  planning  or  designing  of 
improved,  adapted,  or 
new  machines,  and  then 
to  make  working  draw- 
ings of  the  mechanisms 
designed. 

4.  An  experi)nental 
worker  tests  proposed 
changes  in  the  manu- 
facture of  any  mechan- 
ism, in  the  endeavor 
to  correct  any  defects, 
to  improve  the  sym- 
metry of  parts  or  the 
utility  or  durability  of 
the  whole,  or  to  reduce 
at  any  point  the  cost 
of  production. 

5.  A  patternmaker 
constructs  wood  mod- 
els, or  patterns,  of  tool 
or  machine  parts,  from 
which  a  molder  makes 
the  metal  castings. 

Other  of  the  machine 
tradesmen,  i.  The  sta- 
tionary engineer  is  a 
machinist  who  tends  the 
running   and   ordinary 

repairing  of  a  steam  engine  and  boiler  in  block,  factory,  or  shop  and 
the  heating  or  power  system  attached. 

2.  The  chauffeur  and  the  truck  driver  attend  to  the  running  and 
minor  repairing  of  automobile  cars  or  automobile  trucks.  They  also 
keep  the  machines  clean  and  in  good  running  order. 


A  machine  tradesman 

He  is  a  skilled  workman,  and  with  his  dependable 

machine  he  takes  pride  in  turning  out  high-grade 

work.    On   some   particular  jobs   he  works   within 

limits  of  one  one  thousandth  of  an  inch 


198  OCCUPATIONS 


THE  BLACKSMITH 


Nature  and  advantages  of  the  trade.  Among  the  advan- 
tages that  blacksmithing  offers  we  note  the  following :  It 
provides  a  fairly  well-rounded  physical  development.  The 
constant  improvements  in  wagons,  sleighs,  farm  implements, 
and  the  increasing  variety  and  complexity  of  objects  to  be 
repaired,  even  to  the  automobile,  require  continuous  mental 
development. 

Mental  alertness  is  constantly  required  for  emergencies 
or  new  demands,  the  conditions  under  which  any  two  days' 
work  is  done  varying  greatly. 

A  comprehensive  grasp  of  the  whole  interdependent  scheme 
of  implements  and  appliances  necessary  to  rural  production 
and  often  of  general  automobile  construction  is  essential. 

The  work  itself  breeds  in  the  blacksmith  the  highest 
quality  of  honest  manhood  or  good  citizenship,  an  instant 
willingness  to  serve  without  exorbitant  charge  the  necessi- 
ties of  anyone  whose  horse  requires  a  shoe,  or  whose  tool, 
implement,  or  machine  needs  repairing. 

While  blacksmithing  has  many  advantages  to  offer  as  a 
trade,  its  most  serious  disadvantages  are  perhaps  its  long 
hours  and  hard  physical  toil,  with  only  a  fair  remuneration, 
and  with  no  glowing  prospects  of  either  a  large  salary  or 
great  wealth.  And  yet  two  of  these  disadvantages  are  not  so 
great  as  formerly,  since  improved  machines  and  ap]Dliances  are 
relieving  the  blacksmith  of  some  of  his  physical  drudgery  and 
are  shortening  his  hours  of  labor.  So  we  might  conclude 
that  if  one  is  strong  physically,  if  he  loves  the  country  and 
mechanical  work,  and  if  he  is  modest  in  his  desires,  there 
is  no  real  disadvantage  to  be  found  in  blacksmithing.  Here 
one  can  at  least  be  sure  of  a  good  living,  and  ought  to  be 
able  to  lay  up  a  little  against  old  age. 

It  certainly  looks  well  for  blacksmithing  to  find  so  many 
cases  of  two  and  even  three  generations  of  a  family  following 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  199 

the  same  occupation.  It  would  have  been  well  not  only 
for  the  man  but  also  for  society  if  many  a  poor  clerk,  or 
even  lawyer,  doctor,  or  minister,  had  become  what  his  talents 
qualified  him  for,  an  honest,  efficient  blacksmith. 

Training.  Like  every  tradesman  and  citizen  to-day  the 
blacksmith  should  have,  if  possible,  a  sensible  high-school 
education,  including,  in  his  case,  English,  commercial  arith- 
metic, civics,  mathematics,  science,  drawing.  If  his  father 
or  a  neighbor  has  a  shop,  the  boy  should  help  there  at  odd 
times,  and  early  become  as  expert  as  possible  in  mechanical 
work.  Before  becoming  a  journeyman  blacksmith  it  will 
be  necessary  to  qualify  for  the  trade  either  as  an  apprentice 
for  three  or  four  years  or  by  taking  a  two-year  or  three- 
year  course  in  a  technical  or  trade  school. 

Remuneration.  Apprentices  receive  anywhere  from  $3  to 
$6  a  week,  their  pay  increasing  as  they  become  more  valu- 
able. Journeymen  often  set  up  a  shop  for  themselves  or 
enter  into  partnership  with  some  relative,  but  in  case  the\' 
work  for  another  blacksmith  their  wages  may  range  from 
1^15  to  $24  a  week.  Since  many  journeymen  set  \.\\)  in 
business  for  themselves,  and  take  in  addition  the  agency 
in  their  community  for  farm  vehicles  and  implements, 
their  incomes  vary  greatly  from  a  meager  livelihood  to  a 
comfortable  living. 

The  machinist-blacksmith.  In  addition  to  the  general 
blacksmith  just  described, — the  rough-and-ready  jack-of-all- 
trades  mechanic,  — there  is  also  a  sort  of  machinist-blacksmith 
who  repairs  tools  for  workmen  laying  a  railroad  or  con- 
structing a  bridge  or  iron  structural  building,  or  who  serves 
as  a  handy  blacksmith  anywhere  in  a  factory  where  forging 
and  general  repairing  are  needed.  Although  he  is  a  black- 
smith, still  his  life  is  so  different  from  that  of  the  general 
smithy  that  we  had  better  think  of  him  as  a  member  of 
the  machine  tradesmen.  His  wages  arc  often  very  good, 
sometimes  ranging  as  high  as  $6  and  even  S8  a  day. 


200  OCCUPATIONS 


EXERCISES 


1.  If  there  is  any  general  blacksmith  in  your  community,  send  a 
representative  of  your  class  to  learn  from  him  incidents  of  his  appren- 
ticeship ;  the  great  changes  that  have  come  to  his  trade  the  last  forty 
years ;  the  average  income  of  a  general  blacksmith ;  the  advantages 
and  disadvantages  of  the  trade;  what  sort  of  boy  he  would  advise  to 
enter  this  vocation ;  and  what  preparation  he  would  recommend. 

2.  Send  a  member  of  your  class  to  a  local  horseshoer  to  learn  from 
him  information  similar  to  that  gained  from  the  general  blacksmith. 

3.  If  there  is  a  local  machinist-blacksmith  working  for  a  construction 
company  or  in  a  factor)',  have  some  member  of  the  class  get  from  him 
inside  information  of  the  same  sort. 

4.  Can  you  find  out  who  was  the  "  learned  blacksmith "  of  Con- 
necticut, a  man  who  had  learned  several  languages  while  working  at 
the  forge  and  who  was  a  pioneer  of  world-wide  peace  ? 

5.  If  you  live  in  the  country,  compare  the  prosperity  of  the  local 
blacksmith  with  that  of  his  neighbors  who  are  farmers,  building  trades- 
men, and  professional  men. 

6.  Has  the  general  blacksmith  in  your  community  taken  up  automo- 
bile repairing?    If  so,  find  out  how  he  prepared  himself  for  this  work. 

7.  Does  the  local  blacksmith  have  the  agency  for  selling  farm 
wagons,  motor  trucks,  plows,  reapers,  binders,  or  other  farm  appliances? 

MACHINE-SHOP  TRADESMEN 

A  few  years  ago  a  practical  mechanic  and  expert  engi- 
neer wrote  in  the  American  Machinist,  "  If  you  know  of 
a  bright  sixteen-year-old  boy,  smart  and  independent,  with 
snap,  pride,  poverty,  good  health,  and  a  common-school 
education,  and  with  a  hankering  after  the  mechanical  arts, 
tell  him  to  go  into  a  machine-shop  and  learn  tlic  trade." 

Training  for  these  trades.  'J'he  work  of  tlie  machine  shop 
is  still  attractive  to  the  bright  boy  "with  a  hankering  after 
the  mechanical  arts,"  but  imlcss  the  poverty  of  his  family 
pinches  too  hard  he  had  better  not  enter  upon  this  trade 
until  he  has  had  more  than  a  common-school  education. 
The  boys  who  have   had  high-school   advantages  added   to 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES 


20 1 


those  of  the  shop  are  usually  the  ones  that  become  fore- 
men, superintendents,  and  other  high-class  experts.  In- 
stead of  learning  the  machine  trades  by  the  old  apprentice 
system,  it  is  better  to-day  to  prepare  in  a  good  trade  school 
or  by  means  of  a  part-time  plan,  with  nearly  an  equal  amount 
of  time  spent  in  the  shop  and   in  a  trade  high  school. 


The  machinist  at  work 

When  this  workman  learned  his  trade  the  only  plan  available  was  apprenticeship.    For 

three  years  he  served  under  the  direction  of  foremen,  and  then  was  recognized  as  a 

competent  tradesman,  a  so-called  journeyman 

I.  The  apprentice  system.  A  special  report  on  the  needs 
of  part-time  education  submitted  by  the  Massachusetts  Board 
of  Education  to  the  state  legislature  in  January,  191 3, 
throws  much  light  on  this  situation.  Let  us  note  some 
of  its  statements  concerning  apprenticeship  and  part-time 
education  as  applicable  to  machine  shops  : 

The  training  [of  the  apprentice]  is  limited  to  the  kind  of  work  done 
in  that  particular  shop,  or,  in  some  instances,  to  the  particular  department 
or  machine  on  which  the  young  worker  is  employed.  Even  where  the 
shops  have  a  sufficiently  broad  range  of  work  to  enable  them  to  give  the 


202  OCCUPATIONS 

all-round  experience  which  is  necessary  to  make  a  first-class  machinist, 
it  is  difficult  or  impossible  to  maintain  such  a  system  of  training.  All 
the  pressure  on  the  foreman  and  superintendent  is  for  production,  and 
when  it  is  found  that  a  boy  is  capable  of  doing  one  job  well,  he  will 
be  kept  on  the  specialized  machine  until  he  becomes  discouraged,  and 
leaves. 

Furthermore,  this  system  of  [apprentice  training]  does  not  furnish 
enough  skilled  help  for  the  trade.  The  demands  of  the  automobile 
business  have  drawn  large  numbers  away  from  the  machine  shops,  and 
they  have  not  yet  been  adequately  replaced. 

Because  of  the  high  degree  of  skill  required,  together  with  the  ability 
to  do  independent  thinking,  employers  of  machine-shop  help  are  more 
decidedly  in  favor  of  part-time  schooling  than  any  other  group.  Practical 
work  in  the  industry  has  shown  that  manufacturers  who  were  opposed 
to  the  plan  a  few  years  ago  are  now  its  most  enthusiastic  advocates. 

2.  Part-time  schools.  There  are  to-day  successful  part- 
time  schools  connected  with  machine  shops  in  T^itchburg, 
Worcester,  Ouincy,  Beverly,  Fall  River,  and  Newton  (all 
of  Massachusetts),  in  Cincinnati  and  Cleveland,  Ohio,  and 
in  several  cities  of  Illinois  and  of  other  states.  If  you  should 
become  interested  sufficiently  in  a  machine  trade  to  follow 
it  as  a  life  work,  by  all  means  avail  yourself  of  this  part-time 
plan  of  training,  which  from  the  start  will  mean  theory, 
practice,  and  wages  combined  in  proper  proportions.  If 
this  course  is  not  possible  for  you,  then  train  in  a  good 
trade  school  like  those  in  Bridgeport  and  New  Britain,  Con- 
necticut, where  theory  in  class  and  practice  on  a  large  variety 
of  actual  contract  jobs  will  give  you  an  excellent  preparation 
for  the  machine  trades. 

The  interrelation  of  machine-shop  trades.  As  the  general 
scheme  of  work  of  the  machine  trades  on  pages  196-197 
indicates,  the  duties  of  the  machine  and  tool  maker,  of  the 
draftsman,  of  the  designer  and  the  experimental  worker  (if 
the  shop  is  large  enough  to  require  these  two  experts),  and 
of  the  pattern  maker  are  so  interrelated  and  overlapping  that 
in  order  to  do  expert  work  in  any  one  of  these  departments 
the  tradesman   should  have  mastered  both  tlie  theorv  and 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  203 

practical  work  in  the  other  departments.  Let  us  take  up 
first  the  work  of  the  machinist,  or  machine  and  tool  maker, 
and  then  of  the  other  tradesmen  whose  work  overlaps  and 
interlocks  his. 

The  Machinist 

Our  dependence  upon  the  machinist  and  his  associates. 
Handmade  articles  to-day  are  few  and  far  between.  This 
is  a  manufacturing  age  and  we  are  a  great  manufacturing 
people.  A  vast  new  country,  rich  in  natural  resources  and 
production  and  occupied  by  nearly  100,000,000  consumers, 


A  line  examijlc  ol  tlu-  m.K  hinisi's  skill 

Every  part  of  this  engine,  from  cylinder  and  drive  wheel  to  steam  gauge  and  throttle 

valve,  owes  its  smooth  running  to  his  careful  hands.    His  conscientious  work  makes 

it  possible  for  us  to  travel  in  safety  even  sixty  miles  an  hour 

coupled  with  Yankee  ingenuity  and  inventiveness, — this  is 
the  basis  for  our  enormous  manufacturing  enterprises. 
That  our  industrial  activities  require  millions  of  tools 
and  machines  is  very  evident,  but  is  the  need  limited  to 
our  industrial  pursuits  .'  Can  a  man  farm  without  imple- 
ments .''  Can  a  mason  or  carpenter  build  without  tools  .''  Can 
one  travel  or  send  his  goods  without  ships  or  trains  and 
tracks  .''  Can  one  live  at  home,  even  the  simplest  life,  and 
not  use  some  tools  or  machines  or  things  made  by  their  use  .■• 
The  very  necessities  as  well  as  the  comforts  of  our  lives 
depend  in  large  measure  upon  machines,  and  hence  upon 


204  OCCUPATIONS 

those  who  make  them.  All  manufacturing  depends  for  its 
execution  upon  machinery  and  tools.  Without  the  machine 
shops  no  factory  could  have  been  equipped  with  its  machin- 
ery. All  new  tools  and  machiner)'  are  first  designed,  pat- 
terned, molded  or  forged,  and  made  in  a  machine  shop.  All 
improvements  upon  these  tools  and  machines  are  likewise 
made  in  such  a  shop,  and  so  are  the  new  tools  and  machines 
required  in  their  manufacture. 

So,  with  the  daily  demands  for  new  appliances  and  im- 
provements on  old  ones,  and  for  tools  and  machines  neces- 
sary to  build  these,  the  work  in  a  machine  shop  is  a  part 
of  an  endless  chain.  For  no  machine  or  tool  is  without 
its  antecedents,  and  few"  are  likely  to  be  without  a  long 
line  of  descendants.  Evidently  the  day  of  machines  and 
machinists  is  not  passing ;  these  trades  are  in  either  their 
prime  or  their  early  strength. 

Work  of  the  machinist.  The  machinist  makes  the  desired 
tool  or  appliance  out  of  metal,  usually  from  drawings  fur- 
nished by  a  draftsman,  which  show  every  detail  of  form  and 
dimension.  Sometimes  it  is  from  a  bar  of  iron  or  brass  that 
he  shapes  the  major  part  of  the  required  product.  Or  his 
work  may  be  to  take  metal  castings  in  their  rough  condition 
and  construct  his  finished  mechanism  chiefly  from  them. 
Again,  he  may  be  asked  to  repair  or  duplicate  a  piece  of 
machinery  too  fine  to  be  intrusted  to  a  blacksmith.  He 
works  with  lathes,  planers,  milling  machines,  shapers,  presses, 
and  many  other  mechanisms,  both  machines  and  tools.  The 
expert  tradesman,  capable  of  executing  the  most  difficult 
and  perfect  work,  has  much  variety  in  a  day's  activity, 
especially  if  in  a  small  shop,  and  must  grow  constantly  in 
adaptiveness  and  skill. 

The  machinist,  then,  makes,  assembles  (fits  the  various 
parts  together),  and  repairs  tools,  implements,  and  machin- 
ery, including  steam  engines  and  electric  motors,  either  sepa- 
ratelv  or  as  units  in  a  svstem  of  machinerv.    From  his  hand 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  205 

passes  the  finished  product.  But  from  the  draftsman  he  has 
received  his  pictured  orders,  specifications  shown  in  detail 
on  the  mechanical  or  working  drawings.  Let  us  now  look 
into  the  duties  of  this  tradesman. 

The  Draftsman 

TJic  American  MacJiinist  has  said,  "  The  draftsman's 
branch  of  the  mechanical  designing  field  is  one  of  the  best 
in  the  world  for  capable  and  energetic  young  men  whose 
future  depends  on  themselves."  And  in  The  Engineerhig 
Maga.'^ine  it  was  recently  stated,  "  The  drafting  room  is  a 
department  of  very  great  interest  to  every  manufacturer 
seeking  economy  of  production  because  of  the  large  influ- 
ence it  may  exercise  on  the  total  results." 

The  nature  of  the  work.  The  machine  maker  and  tool- 
maker,  or  machinist,  executes  in  detail  the  blue-print  orders  of 
the  draftsman.  If  these  orders  as  found  on  the  blue  print  are 
either  not  accurate  in  their  specifications  or  not  true  to  the 
mechanical  principles  involved,  then  the  finished  tool  or 
machine  will  be  useless.  In  the  smaller  shops  the  drafts- 
man, and  in  the  larger  ones  the  designer,  may  be  likened 
to  the  architect  who  not  only  designs  the  outside  of  a 
structure  but  also  plans  part  by  part  its  corresponding  inte- 
rior and  specifies  all  details  of  its  construction.  If  the 
machine  draftsman  or  designer  is  like  the  architect,  then 
the  machine  maker  would  correspond  to  the  master  builder, 
who  executes  the  orders  and  specifications  of  the  archi- 
tect. As  the  architect  must  understand  in  detail  all  the 
principles  underlying  the  actual  building  of  the  house  he 
has  drawn,  and  all  the  materials  that  will  enter  into  its 
construction,  so  in  drafting  a  tool  or  machine  the  drafts- 
man must  know  absolutely  the  mechanical  principles  in- 
volved, the  materials  to  be  used,  and  every  other  detail  of 
the  construction. 


2o6  OCCUPATIONS 

The  meaning  of  expert  draftsmanship.  It  means  far 
more  to  be  a  draftsman  in  a  machine  shop  than  simply  to  be 
able  to  copy  or  to  interpret  mechanical  drawings,  as  some 
boys  imagine.  It  means  in  addition  to  this  a  mastery  of 
shop  mathematics,  physics,  applied  mechanics,  strength  of 
materials,  engine  practice  (both  steam  and  internal  com- 
bustion), and  power  transmission.  In  order  to  tell  others 
what  to  do  or  make,  one  should  know  all  about  it  him- 
self. So  we  find  the  draftsman  a  man  of  great  value 
among  machine  tradesmen. 

The  Designer 

Let  us  learn  more  about  the  designing  side  of  the  drafts- 
man's trade,  or  of  the  duties  of  the  designer  if  the  shop  is 
large  enough  to  employ  this  expert.  The  draftsman  may  not 
understand  all  the  fine  points  about  the  designing  of  tools 
and  machines,  but  the  designer  must  always  be  thoroughly 
qualified  in  all  the  details  of  drafting,  and  he  must  go  farther. 

The  problems  of  the  designer.  To  illustrate.  The  super- 
intendent of  a  machine  shop  or  perhaps  a  customer  gives 
the  designer  this  problem  :  This  press  (used  for  cutting 
or  stamping  the  tops  and  bottoms  of  gallon  tin  cans)  is 
perfectly  satisfactory  except  in  this  one  particular  [which 
is  explained].  Now,  we  want  you  to  design  one  like  it 
but  correct  the  unsatisfactory  feature  and  make  it  smaller 
and  adapted  to  stamp  out  most  economically  the  tops  and 
bottoms  of  pint  cans.  The  problem  may  look  easy  ;  but  it 
means  ability  to  apply  the  principles  of  mathematics,  physics, 
mechanics,  strength  of  materials,  symmetr)',  and  drawing  to 
the  end  sought, — a  machine  perfect  in  symmetry  of  parts, 
execution  of  work,  durability,  and  economy  of  construction, 
— and  then  to  draft  this  on  paper  with  all  details  and 
specifications  so  that  the  machine  maker  can  construct  with 
unfailing  accuracy  the  desired  stamping  press. 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  207 

The  problem  brought  to  the  designer  in  the  machine 
shop  of  an  automobile  factory  might  be  to  adapt  the  design 
of  a  large  touring  car  to  that  of  a  small  runabout  in  motor, 
chassis,  and  body,  so  that  the  desired  machine  would  sat- 
isfy the  discriminating  public  and  could  be  sold  at  about 
half  the  cost  of  the  original  car.  This  is,  of  course,  a  far 
more  intricate  problem  ;  but  a  designer  is  an  adapter,  a 
most  expert  mechanician,  often  possessing  the  education 
and  qualifications  of  a  mechanical  engineer,  l^o  design  a 
tool  or  an  intricate  machine  is  not  the  work  of  an  artist, 
but  the  work  of  a  superbly  equipped  machine  architect. 

The  designer's  assistants.  In  adapting  or  designing  a  new 
automobile,  printing  press,  typewriter,  locomotive,  or  other 
intricate  mechanism,  the  designer  may  have  the  assistance 
of  draftsmen,  patternmakers,  machine  makers  and  toolmakers, 
and  possibly  one  or  more  experimental  workers.  However,  we 
should  understand  that  only  the  largest  machine  shops  em- 
ploy experimental  workers,  since  in  the  smaller  shops  their 
work  is  done  by  the  draftsman  and  his  assistants,  and  also 
that  in  the  smaller  shop  the  draftsman  and  designer  are  one 
person.  Now  let  us  glance  at  the  duties  of  the  experimental 
worker. 

The  Experimental  Worker 

Nature  of  the  work.  The  experimental  worker  is  needed 
to  test,  check  up,  and  experiment  on  changes  suggested 
by  the  designer,  or  other  authority,  in  the  manufacture  of 
any  mechanism.  He  may  try  to  discover  a  means  to  cor- 
rect some  defect  in  construction,  to  improve  the  product 
turned  out  by  the  machine,  to  increase  its  durability,  or  to 
reduce  the  cost  of  its  production.  Whenever  intricate  or 
extensive  changes  either  in  the  design  of  some  mechanism 
or  in  the  inner  arrangement  and  equipment  of  the  shop  are 
needed,  the  experimental  worker  may  be  called  upon  to  plan 
and  test  out  many  of  the  details  involved. 


2o8  OCCUPATIONS 

There  are,  of  course,  experimental  workers  of  all  kinds 
in  many  large  industrial  plants  outside  of  machine  shops. 
Edison  employs  many  of  them  in  prosecuting  his  countless 
inventions.  Numerous  chemists  are  engaged  in  experimen- 
tal work  in  a  multitude  of  factories  to  improve  the  prod- 
uct, to  lessen  the  cost  of  its  manufacture,  and  to  utilize 
:inv  bv-products. 

Qualifications.  This  mechanic  may  be  a  young  mechani- 
cal engineer,  preferablx'  an  experienced  tool  and  machine 
maker.  He  may  be  very  original,  practical,  and  skillful, 
and  need  few  directions  except  general  ones  ;  or  he  may 
be  simply  a  skilled  mechanical  assistant  who  does  well 
whatever  he  is  asked  specifically  to  do  but  who  has  little 
or  no  initiative'.  The  hrst  sort  is  a  very  desirable  man, 
doubtless  in  line  for  promotion  to  draftsman  or  even  de- 
signer, while  the  other  man  secures  about  the  average 
wages  of  tradesmen   in   the   shop. 

The  Patternmaker 

Rut  we  must  return  to  the  smaller  shop,  the  best  place 
for  the  young  machinist  to  become  broadly  proficient,  where 
we  left  the  machine  maker  and  toolmaker  and  the  draftsman, 
and  examine  somewhat  the  work  of  the  patternmaker. 

Where\-er  metal  castings  are  used,  as  in  making  tools, 
machines,  stoves,  furnaces,  engines,  etc.,  there  is  needed 
the  services  of  a  patternmaker,  lu'ery  foundry  —  and  they 
are  legion — -requires  his  assistance,  as  all  castings  depend 
for  their  form  upon  his  wood  models,  or  patterns. 

The  nature  and  importance  of  the  work.  In  his  book 
"  Pattern  Making,"  Mr.  C.  11.  Willard  writes: 

I'attern  making  to-day  is  considered  one  of  the  foremost  of  all  the 
skilled  mechanical  trades.  The  pattern  maker  must  be  able  to  read  a 
drawing  and  also  to  picture  in  his  mind  what  the  finished  casting  will 
look  like  when  the  machinist  has  completed  his  work  on  it ;    he  must 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  209 

also  have  knowledge  as  to  how  the  casting  is  to  be  removed  from  the 
molding  sand  in  the  foundry,  where  it  should  be  parted  in  the  flask,  and 
when  the  cores  are  needed,  the  shape  and  size  of  the  cores,  and  how  to 
construct  the  pattern  so  that  it  will  preserve  its  form  and  be  durable. 
Some  patterns  do  not  need  to  be  made  as  perfect  as  others,  as  only  one 
casting  may  be  required.  In  a  case  of  this  kind  the  pattern  maker  adopts 
the  quickest  and  cheapest  construction  possible. 

The  making  of  all  tools  and  devices  in  cast  metals  necessitates  the 
previous  making  of  a  pattern.  At  the  present  time  not  only  cast  metals 
require  a  pattern,  but  frequently  stone,  brick,  mortar,  cement,  plaster  of 
Paris,  rubber,  glass,  paper  —  in  fact,  almost  everything  that  is  made  in 
odd  shapes  requires  a  pattern.  Some  men  working  at  the  foundry  trade 
are  so  well  trained  in  their  occupation  that  they  can  make  some  pieces 
without  the  aid  of  a  pattern,  but  such  men  are  few. 

Training.  Some  large  concerns  start  their  apprentice  boys  in  the 
factory  and  pass  them  on  to  the  drawing  room,  enabling  them  to  obtain 
an  accurate  and  practical  knowledge  of  drawing,  which  is  quite  as  essen- 
tial as  the  knowledge  of  pattern  making.  Some  pattern  makers  spend 
nearly  as  much  time  trying  to  picture  in  their  minds  how  the  casting 
should  look  when  taken  out  of  the  sand  as  they  do  in  working  at  the 
pattern,  while  if  they  had  a  good  knowledge  of  drawing  much  of  this 
time  would  be  saved. 

From  the  drawing  room  the  apprentice  goes  to  the  foundry,  where 
he  obtains  a  good  idea  of  the  best  and  easiest  way  to  mold  a  pattern. 
The  pattern  maker's  education,  then,  comes  from  experience  in  the 
drawing  room  and  the  shops  most  closely  related  to  the  pattern  shop, 
as  well  as  through  experience  in  the  pattern  shop  itself. 

This  excellent  account  of  the  patternmaker's  work,  train- 
ing, and  importance  has  doubtless  answered  many  questions 
in  your  minds  about  this  trade.  We  have  seen  that  the  pat- 
ternmaker requires  a  knowledge  of  the  other  machine-shop 
trades,  mathematical  accuracy,  and  great  skill  in  woodwork- 
ing. This  is  in  many  ways  a  most  attractive  trade  to  boys 
who  like  to  fashion  things  out  of  wood.  It  is  clean  work, 
free  from  dust  and  from  machine  accidents;  it  keeps  the 
faculties  keen  and  the  hands  dexterous  ;  and  it  is  well  paid. 


2IO 


OCCUPATIONS 


Choice  of  a  Machine  Trade  and   of  a   Shop 

If  you  liavc  the  natural  mechanical  qualifications  and  are 
considering  seriously  following  one  of  the  machine-shop 
trades,  it  would  be  well  for  you  to  investigate  at  first  hand 
machine-shop  conditions  in  your  own  or  any  near-by  city.  In 
some  shops  there  are  so  few  kinds  of  mechanisms  made  that 
the  work  has  degenerated  into  a  sort  of  unskilled  labor,  while 


Turning  car  whct-ls 

Car  wheels  when  first  fitted  on  the  axles  are  rough,  and  must  be  smoothed,  or 
"  turned,"  so  that  they  may  roll  easily  on  the  rails.  The  machine  here  shown  is  very 
powerful,  being  run  by  a  fifty-horse-power  electric  motor,  and  of  course  must  be 
operated  with  care.  Yet  the  man  who  turns  wheels  month  after  month  need  not  be 
so  skillful  as  the  all-round  machinist  in  sonic  small  machine  shops 


in  others  hundreds  of  different  kinds  of  tools  and  machines 
are  constructed  in  the  course  of  a  year,  thus  rendering  the 
work  decidedly  varied  and  of  the  sort  to  develop  all-round, 
adaptable,  skilled  machinists.  Occasionally  shops  are  found 
where  the  machines  are  unprotected  and  dangerous,  the 
metal  dust  is  allowed  to  fly  freely  from  the  emery  wheels, 
and   the    general    hygienic    conditions    arc    bad.      In    some 


MACHINK  AND  RKLA'I'KD    IRADES  2ii 

communities  there  is  a  dearth  of  good  maehine  workeis,  in 
others  the  sup])ly  far  exceeds  the  demand.  Hence,  in  de- 
ciding what  branch  of  machine  work  you  would  prefer,  it 
would  be  well,  after  reading  this  chapter  and  the  references, 
for  you  to  visit  a  number  of  shops  and  see  the  different 
tradesmen  at  their  work. 

Remuneration  and  advancement.  As  has  been  said,  the 
demand  for  skilled  tradesmen  is  excellent  in  most  localities. 
Advancement  is  slow  or  rapid,  according  to  the  workman 
and  the  shop.  Beginners  are  paid  from  $3  upwards  a  week, 
the  average  yearly  increase  for  boys  being  $1  or  a  little  more 
per  week  and  for  men  somewhat  higher.  Journeymen  tool- 
makers  and  patternmakers  usually  receive  about  the  same 
wages  —  from  $2  to  $6  a  clay,  depending  on  locality  and  other 
conditions.  Draftsmen  are  often  paid  a  little  more,  some- 
times much  more  ;  in  cases  of  foremen,  at  times  as  high  as 
$2500  a  year.  Designers  are  often  still  better  paid,  a  few 
chief  designers  receiving  as  high  as  $7500  a  year.  The  ex- 
perimental worker,  if  a  helper,  is  sometimes  paid  less  than 
the  regular  machinist ;  if  a  chief,  he  may  receive  as  high  as 
$2000  to  $2500, 

While  the  machine-shop  trades  would  not  rank  as  high  as 
certain  of  the  building  trades  in  the  matter  of  health,  still 
they  are  generally,  as  we  have  seen,  attractive  vocations,  im- 
proving daily  with  safer  machines  and  better  hygienic  shop 
conditions.  As  a  rule  they  are  not  overcrowded,  and  they 
offer  excellent  opportunities  to  trained  young  men  of  the 
right  sort. 

EXERCISES 

1.  In  the  local  machine  shops  are  the  belts,  gears,  and  dangerous 
machines  protected.''  Are  the  grinding  wheels  provided  with  dust  ex- 
hausts? Does  every  precaution  for  safety  of  limb  and  preservation  of 
health  seem  to  have  been  taken  ? 

2.  Is  the  supply  of  machinists  in  your  town  equal  to  the  demand?  Is  it 
too  great?   Is  this  true  of  toolmakers,  draftsmen,  and  patternmakers? 


212  OCCUTATIOXS 

3.  What  large  manufacturing  plants  are  there  in  your  town?  How 
many  have  a  machine  shop  or  department?  How  many  employ  a 
designer  in  addition  to  the  regular  draftsmen?  How  many  employ 
experimental  workers  ? 

4.  What  education  have  the  most  expert  machinists  in  your  locality 
received  —  technical  school,  high  school,  or  common  school  ?  What  are 
their  positions?    What  are  their  salaries? 

5.  Why  is  it  better  for  a  young  machinist  to  secure  a  position  in  a 
small  shop  than  in  a  large  one?  in  one  where  many  kinds  of  tools  and 
machines  are  made  rather  than  where  only  a  few  kinds  are  built? 

6.  The  present  high  industrial  organization  calls  for  short  cuts  and 
time-saving  methods.    Just  how  can  a  machine  shop  meet  this  demand? 

7.  What  is  the  relation  of  a  machine  shop  to  a  factory?  In  what 
way  is  each  dependent  upon  the  other? 

8.  Does  a  labor-saving  machine  take  work  away  from  skilled  me- 
chanics?   Does  it  give  them  extra  work?    Explain. 

9.  Using  Professor  Schneider's  measuring  scale  (p.  165).  how  many 
per  cent  would  you  give  each  of  the  three  leading  machine-shop 
trades?     Explain    vour   reasons. 

OTHER  .MACHINE   TRADESMEN 

The  Stationary  Engineer 

In  this  day  of  skyscrapers,  lar<(e  institutional  buildings, 
and  countless  great  manufacturing  plants,  the  steam  engineer 
is  as  necessary  as  any  of  the  building  or  machine  tradesmen. 
It  is  he  who  superintends  the  firemen  at  the  heating  plant 
or  manages  the  power  house.  Only  a  few  years  ago  steam 
engineering  presented  very  limited  opportunities  to  the 
ambitious  youth.  To-day  there  arc  many  demands  for  tech- 
nically trained  steam  engineers  qualified  to  take  charge  of 
the  mammoth  plants  producing  from  1000  to  75,000  horse 
power,  with  lighting,  heating,  and  power  auxiliaries.  The 
expert  steam  engineer  at  present  holds  a  very  responsible 
position,  earns  a  good  salary,  and  is  respected  as  a  skilled 
tradesman. 


MACHINE  AXn   RELA'I'ED  1'RADES  213 

Preparation.  The  steam  engineer  .should  understand  such 
subjects  as  mathematics,  mechanical  drawing,  mechanics, 
heat  and  steam,  fuel,  economic  combustion  of  coal,  boiler 
installation,  engine  design  and  management,  and  other  top- 
ics of  this  nature.  Such  knowledge,  moreover,  is  theoretical, 
and  he  must  add  to  it  practical  experience  in  the  handling 
and  repair  of  engines  and  boilers. 

When  we  consider  that  many  steam  engineers  inust  in  ad- 
dition be  equally  proficient  in  their  knowledge  of  d\namos 
and  motors,  because  electricity  and  steam  are  found  to-da}- 
side  by  side  in  city  blocks,  factories,  and  power  houses, 
then  we  discover  that  to  be  a  thoroughly  equipped  steam 
engineer  one  must  have  a  broad  knowledge  of  machinery, 
steam,  and  electricity.  As  is  true  of  the  machine-shop  trades, 
one  can  best  train  for  this  trade  in  a  part-time  technical  school 
course  or  at  a  technical  school,  such  as  the  Pratt  Institute  of 
Brooklyn,  New  York ;  the  Carnegie  Institute  of  Technology, 
Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania ;  the  University  of  Cincinnati  (part- 
time  courses),  Cincinnati,  Ohio ;  the  Drexel  Institute,  Phila- 
delphia, Pennsylvania.  Such  courses  are  from  two  to  four 
years  in  length,  and  are  less  expensive  per  year  than  regular 
college  courses.  One  who  has  had  a  high-school  education 
and  has  the  persistence  to  study  alone  regularl}-  for  months 
could  get  an  excellent  training  from  a  good  correspondence 
school.  In  this  case  he  could  work  days  and  study  eve- 
nings and  at  odd  times.  Many  have  succeeded  in  this  way, 
though,  of  course,  it  is  a  verv  difficult  path  to  advancement. 

Nature  of  the  work,  advancement,  and  remuneration.  At 
the  start  one  is  usually  obliged  to  work  as  assistant  or  fire- 
man. This  means  hard,  dirty  work  in  a  hot  boiler  pit, 
but  it  also  includes  much  technical  training  that  counts 
toward  future  advancement.  The  wages  here  may  be  from 
$40  to  $65  a  month,  depending  on  the  position,  the  man, 
the  locality,  etc.  To  the  right  man  advancement  should 
be  rapid,  though  in  all  probability  he  will  need  to  change 


214  OCCUPATIONS 

employers  in  order  to  secure  the  higher  position.  This  does 
not  mean  that  a  young  man  should  leave  his  first  place, 
however  exacting  its  duties,  until  he  has  learned  the  most  it 
has  to  teach  him,  and  until  he  can  obtain  a  position  enough 
better  to  warrant  changing.  During  the  first  few  years 
young  people  are  likely  to  change  their  positions  too  often, 
in  order  to  secure  immediate  gains,  which  later  prove  per- 
manent losses  ;  while  tradesmen  in  their  prime  are  prone 
to  remain  rather  too  long  in  the  same  position.  It  may 
be  added  that  the  work  of  assistant  engineer  or  fireman, 
though  somewhat  disagreeable,  offers  excellent  opportuni- 
ties for  learning  the  trade  from  the  chief  engineer,  if  he 
be  of  the  right  sort,  and  from  books  during  the  odd  times 
that  the  assistant's  duties  will  permit. 

After  one  becomes  established  as  chief  engineer  in  a  shop 
which  requires  several  assistants,  the  particular  advantages 
of  the  calling  appear.  If  you  have  a  liking  for  machinery, 
especially  a  great  engine  which  seems  to  be  both  a  giant 
friend,  possessed  of  unthinkable  power,  and  a  docile,  ef- 
ficient serv^ant  doing  your  will  perfectly  and  obedient  to 
your  slightest  touch  —  then  assuredly  you  will  find  the  work 
satisfactory.  ( )f  course  ncjw  and  then  the  giant  companion 
will  be  out  of  sorts  and  will  need  humoring,  or,  to  change 
the  figure,  his  harness  may  not  be  equal  to  the  load  and  may 
require  mending.  But  day  in  and  day  out  there  are  only 
enough  mechanical  difficulties  to  keep  the  engineer  mentally 
alert  and  mechanically  skillful.  These  serve  to  give  the 
work  variety,  and  make  the  calling  more  desirable  for  expert 
enginemen. 

The  hygienic  conditions  usually  are  good,  the  danger 
from  accidents  is  not  great,  the  employment  is  continuous, 
the  length  of  an  active  career  is  usuall\'  many  years,  and 
the  salar)^  in  an  increasing  number  of  positions  is  attractive. 
Stationary  engineers  receive  from  $60  to  $125  a  month  in 
the  smaller  positions  and  from  $100  to  $200,  and  in  a  few 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES     215 

cases  even  more,  in  the  large  power  houses  and  manufac- 
turing plants.  As  in  many  other  trades,  the  demand  and 
supply  of  workmen  in  any  locality  affect  greatly  the  wages 
paid.  So,  in  order  to  get  such  accurate  information  on  this 
point  as  would  serve  your  purpose,  you  must  investigate  at 
first  hand  the  actual  wages  paid  firemen  and  engineers  in 
your  city  or  section. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Visit  any  large  manufacturing  plant,  power  house,  or  city  block, 
where  a  stationary  engine  is  installed,  and  inspect  the  boiler  and  engine 
rooms.  Compare  the  hygienic  conditions  there  with  those  you  find  in 
machine  shops.  Which  are  better?  In  which  would  one  be  more  liable 
to  injury  from  machinery.''  In  which  does  the  work  seem  more  agree- 
able to  you?  In  which  are  the  opportunities  for  advancement  more 
favorable?    In  which  does  the  skilled  mechanic  receive  better  pay? 

2.  Using  Professor  Schneider's  occupation  scale  (p.  165),  how  high 
would  you  rank  the  work  of  the  fireman  ?    of  the  engineer  ? 

3.  Is  this  vocation  likely  to  become  overcrowded  in  the  near  future? 
Give  your  reasons. 

4.  Wnich  should  you  prefer  —  the  work  of  a  strictly  steam  engineer  or 
of  a  steam-electric  engineer  (the  mechanic  who  has  charge  of  both  steam 
engine  and  electric  dynamo  and  motor  equipment)?  Compare  the  rela- 
tive advantages  and  probable  future  of  these  two  kinds  of  engineer. 

5.  Do  you  know  any  fireman  who  has  worked  up  to  chief  engi- 
neer by  studying  steam  engineering  from  a  correspondence  school  at 
odd  moments  and  evenings?  If  so,  ask  him  to  tell  you  how  he  did 
it,  and  what  it  cost. 

The  Chauffeur  and  the  Motor-Truck  I^river 

Growth  of  automobile  industry.  I'hc  output  of  motor 
cars  by  American  factories  during  19 14  reached  the  enor- 
mous total  of  500,000,  which,  added  to  the  total  of  approx- 
imately 1,400,000  cars  which  were  in  use  at  the  beginning 
of  the  )X'ar,  brings  this  country'  within  reaching  distance  of 
the  two-million  mark,  a  staggering  total  for  a  type  of  vehicle 
which  a  few  years  since  was  regarded  as  a  curiosity. 


2l6 


OCCUPATIONS 


Demand  for  chauffeurs.  In  such  an  extensive,  rapidly 
growing  industry  it  is  evident  that  there  arc  numerous  op- 
portunities for  profitable  employment,  and  that  the  demand 
for  ivell-qualified  chauffeurs  must  greatly  exceed  the  supply. 
To-day  many  automobile  owners  are  forced  to  accept  the  ex- 
pensive service  of  poorlv  prepared  and  otherwise  incompetent 


V-K       V^K    V%. 


J  driving  a  motor  truck 

Motors  in  the  United  States  used  for  freight  now  number  about  60,000.     Since 

as  yet  only  i  per  cent  of  the  animal  power  represented  by  horses  and  mules  has  been 

displaced,  it  seems  that  motor  trucking  is  still  in  its  infancy  and  that  the  demand 

for  competent  drivers  will  steadily  increase 

drivers  ;  and  yet  we  must  not  ignore  the  fact  that,  how- 
ever great  has  been  the  demand  for  competent  chauffeurs, 
from  now  on  an  increasingly  large  proportion  of  people  of 
moderate  means  who  are  going  to  buy  cars  will  prefer  to 
drive  the  cars  themselves. 

A  large  automobile  company,  whose  service  department 
is  thoroughly  in  touch  with  motor-car  conditions  throughout 
the  United  States,  makes  the  following  statement : 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  217 

Remuneration.  A  good  chauffeur  will  often  receive  higher  wages  than 
if  employed  in  a  factory  or  elsewhere,  this  holding  true  especially  when 
the  man  is  not  a  skilled  mechanic.  A  careful  driver  willing  to  be  on  call 
during  the  day  and  evening,  a  man  who  takes  good  care  of  his  car  and 
is  obliging,  may  earn  up  to  $35  a  week. 

As  to  the  wages  given  a  man  at  the  start,  this  depends  very  much  on 
the  man  himself,  in  fact  this  holds  true  in  every  phase  of  the  matter. 
We  should  say  that  men  receive  from  #10  to  #18  at  the  beginning. 
Drivers  of  average  success  eventually  receive  from,  say,  #18  to  |.22, 
and  occasionally  much  more  than  this,  as  intimated  in  the  beginning  of 
this  letter.  Many  men  fit  in  so  well  that  they  receive  wages  beyond 
what  would  ordinarily  be  paid  them  for  the  mere  work  of  driving  alone. 
There  is  a  good  demand  for  capable  men. 

Training.  A  good  driver  obtains  his  mechanical  knowledge  of  cars 
either  in  a  shop  or  garage,  or  in  an  automobile  school.  For  example, 
a  man  who  has  worked  in  our  repair  shop  and  who  is  given  an  oppor- 
tunity to  drive  a  car  should  become  a  good  chauffeur.  He  can  get  more 
or  less  the  same  training  by  getting  employment  in  a  repair  shop  of 
.some  garage.  The  time  required  for  this  special  preparation  depends 
naturally  on  the  aptitude  of  the  man  and  his  previous  employment.  A 
mechanic  with  some  experience  in  a  machine  shop  will  naturally  pick 
up  the  details  of  an  automobile  quicker  than  a  man  without  such  train- 
ing. In  the  case  of  a  man  who  is  not  a  mechanic  it  might  take,  say, 
from  three  to  five  months. 

There  are  automobile  schools  where  men  are  trained  to  become  driv- 
ers. Their  charges  vary.  In  our  city  there  is  one  which  charges  $25 
for  the  course.  In  this  case  there  are  no  stipulated  number  of  lessons 
or  number  of  weeks,  but  the  man  is  taught  to  drive  and  look  after  a 
car.  If  he  is  a  mechanic  he  may  pick  up  enough  in  from  two  to  four 
wrecks.  The  Y.M.C.A.  here  has  an  automobile  course  for  which  no 
charge  is  made. 

Demand  for  expert  drivers.  You  will  understand  that  it  is  a  relatively 
simple  thing  to  drive  a  car.  It  is  more  difficult,  however,  to  tell  when 
there  is  something  the  matter  and  how  to  remedy  it.  Some  men  are 
little  more  than  drivers,  but  a  good  chauffeur  understands  how  to  put  his 
car  in  order  and  will  keep  it  in  order.  Men  who  are  capable  and  careful 
drivers,  who  keep  their  machines  in  perfect  order  so  that  the  best  service 
may  always  be  obtained  from  them,  whose  habits  are  good,  etc.,  etc., 
soon  become  known  as  desirable  men  and  not  only  draw  good  wages 
but  are  hired  permanendy.  Inferior  men  are  often  let  go  in  the  winter 
and  find  positions  from  place  to  place.  There  is  a  wide  difference  in 
the  capabilities  of  drivers. 


2i8  OCCUPATIONS 

A  well-qualified  chauffeur  appreciates  what  it  means  to 
drive  this  strong  yet  intricate  power  plant,  the  automobile, 
and  to  keep  it  in  perfect  adjustment.  Such  a  driver  sees  to 
it  that  the  ignition  system  is  in  perfect  order,  that  the  car- 
buretor produces  a  suitable  explosive  inixture,  that  the  water 
circulation  is  right,  the  valves  and  bearings  in  good  shape, 
the  supply  of  oil  adequate,  etc.  The  demand  for  his  serv- 
ices without  doubt  will  increase  for  years  to  come  since 
most  owners  now  realize  that  it  is  cheaper  to  employ  a 
capable,  technically  educated  driver  at  a  good  salary  than  a 
comparatively  ignorant  one  at  a  smaller  salary.  The  latter 
costs  too  much  in  repair  bills,  dela3's,  and  general  dissatis- 
faction to  hope  to  secure  the  satisfactory  position  and  salary 
open  to  the  qualified  cliauffeur. 

Advantages  and  disadvantages.  Xo  doubt  this  vocation 
has  its  attractions  —  the  work  is  light,  it  is  performed  in 
the  open  air,  and  one's  employers  are  often  people  of  refine- 
ment. Yet  this  fact  must  also  be  taken  into  consideration 
— the  young  man  is  often  brought  into  contact  with  peo- 
ple who  are  spending  money  extravagantly,  and  after  a  time 
he  is  liable  to  value  the  dollar  somewhat  lightly.  His  views 
of  life  and  his  manner  of  living  are  likely  to  be  influenced 
largely  by  those  of  his  employer  and  others  of  the  same 
class.  Unless  he  is  a  young  man  of  considerable  backbone, 
he  may  live  beyond  his  means,  become  greatly  dissatisfied 
with  his  station,  and  get  into  some  very  serious  trouble.  At 
any  rate,  it  is  well  to  weigh  all  points  before  choosing  this 
vocation  for  life. 

The  advantages  of  motor-truck  driving.  But  we  must  also 
at  least  glance  at  the  work  of  the  motor-truck  driver.  Al- 
though his  duties  may  seem  less  desirable  than  those  of  the 
pleasure-car  driver,  there  are  these  advantages  to  be  con- 
sidered :  more  regular  hours  of  employment,  good  demand  for 
drivers,  a  regular  vacation  period,  a  greater  personal  inde- 
pendence in  one's  work,  and  less  danger  from  reckless  driving. 


MACHINE  AND  RELATED  TRADES  219 

EXERCISES 

1.  Have  the  chauffeurs  and  truck  drivers  you  know  held  the  same 
position  for  several  years?  Are  they  getting  good  salaries?  Have  they 
any  expectations  of  further  advancement  in  salary?  Would  they  advise 
you  to  enter  the  same  trade  ? 

2.  In  your  locality,  which  is  considered  the  better  occupation,  that 
of  chauffeur  or  of  truck  driver  ?    Which  is  better  paid  as  a  rule  ? 

3.  What  schools,  if  any,  are  there  near  you  that  train  auto  drivers  ? 
How  long  is  the  course?    How  thorough? 

4.  In  a  few  years,  when  nearly  all  the  wealthy  people  who  would 
employ  chauffeurs  have  bought  their  cars  and  employed  their  drivers, 
will  the  demand  for  additional  expert  chauffeurs  with  good  salaries 
continue  or  decline?  Give  in  full  the  reasons  for  your  answer.  Should 
this  prospect  affect  one's  choice  of  this  vocation  for  his  life  work  ? 

5.  Wliich  of  all  the  trades  presented  in  this  chapter  do  you  consider 
the  best  one  ?    Explain  fully  your  reasons  for  this  preference. 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Adams,  JosEPit  H.    Harpers  Machinery  I5ook  for  Boys.    Harper  and 

Brothers,  New  York.    $1.75. 
CoMPTOX,  Alfred  G.    First  Lessons  in  Metal  Working.    John  Wiley 

and  Sons,  New  York.    $1.50. 
DvKE,  A.  L.    Automobile  Encyclopedia.    The  Motor  X'chicle  Tublish- 

ing  Company,  New  York.    $3.25. 
HoL.MSTROM,  J.  G.    Modern  Blacksmithing,  Rational  Horseshoeing,  and 

Wagon  Making.  Frederick  J.  Drake  and  Company,  Chicago.  $1.00. 
ToLMAN,  W.   H.,  and  Guthrie,   A.   W.     Hygiene  for  the  Worker. 

American  Book  Company,  New  York.    50  cents. 
WiLLARD,   G.   H.     Pattern   Making.     Popular   Mechanics    Publishing 

Company,  Chicago.    $1.00. 
WiLLARD,  W.  F.    A  Practical  Course  in  Mechanical  Drawing.    Popular 

Mechanics  Publishing  Company,  Chicago.    50  cents. 
Windsor,  H.  H.    The  Boy  Mechanic.    Popular  Mechanics  Publishing 

Company,  Chicago.    $1.50. 


220  OCCUPATIONS 

Pamphlets 

Automobile  Running.  International  Correspondence  Schools,  Scran- 
ton,  Pa.  Free.  (Instruction  books  are  issued  and  distributed  free 
of  charge  by  all  automobile  manufacturers.) 

Steam  Engineering.  International  Correspondence  Schools,  Scranton, 
Pa.    Free. 

The  Machinist.  Bulletin  Xo.  i  of  the  Vocation  Bureau  of  Boston. 
ID  cents. 

The  Needs  and  Possibilities  of  Part-time  Education.  A  special  report 
submitted  to  the  legislature,  January',  191 3.  Massachusetts  Board 
of  Education.  Boston.    Free. 


Periodicals 

Auioiiiohile  Dealer  ami  Repairer.  Monthly.  The  Motor  \'ehicle  Pub- 
lishing Company,  New  York.    $1.00  per  year. 

Machinery.    Monthly.    Industrial  Press,  New  York.    5 [.00  per  year. 

Popular  Mechanics.  Monthly.  Popular  Mechanics  Publishing  Com- 
pany, Chicago.    $1.50  per  year. 

Tlie  American  Blacksmith.  Monthly.  The  .American  Blacksmith 
Publishing  Company,  Buffalo.    ,$i.oo  per  year. 

The  American  Machinist.  Weekly.  Hill  Publishing  Company,  New 
York.    $4.00  per  year. 

The  Scientific  American.  Weekly.  Munn  and  Compan\-,  New  York. 
$3.00  per  year. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS 

If  it  will  go  ten  miles  without  stopping,  I  can  make  it  go  around  the 
globe.  —  Samuel  F.  B.  Moksk 

The  whole  of  the  material  needs  of  humanity,  and  many  of  its  intellec- 
tual requirements,  are  either  satisfied  through  the  labors  of  the  engineer,  or 
are  under  obligations  to  these  labors. —  Sir  Frederick  Br.\m\vell 

For  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  our  daily  life  we  are 
without  doubt  greatly  indebted  to  farmers,  builders,  archi- 
tects, merchants,  and  manufacturers.  Countless  workmen  in 
these  vocations  toil  for  us.  However,  just  below  the  sur- 
face of  things,  if  we  but  investigate,  we  find  that  various 
members  of  the  engineering  professions  are  rendering  dis- 
tinctly necessary  services. 

Engineering  achievements.  Before  the  manufacturing  can 
begin,  the  mechanical  engineer  must  first  plan  the  factory, 
and  design  and  install  the  special  machinery  and  equipment 
necessary  for  the  manufacture  of  the  desired  product.  If 
electricity  should  be  needed  to  any  considerable  extent  in  the 
operation  of  the  factor)^,  the  electrical  engineer  also  would 
contribute  his  valuable  assistance.  Or  should  the  processes 
of  manufacture  involve  chem.ical  reactions,  as  in  making 
paints,  petroleum  products,  explosives,  plasters,  casein  prod- 
ucts, substances  from  cellulose,  nitrates  from  the  air,  new 
proaucts  from  denatured  alcohol,  synthetic  rubber,  etc.,  then 
the  help  of  the  industrial  chemist  would  be  required. 

In  the  smelter  we  should  need,  in  addition  to  some  of 
these  engineers  just  mentioned,  the  services  of  the  metal- 
lurgical engineer  to  adapt  and  to  direct  the  best  method  of 


222  OCCUPATIONS 

extracting  the  mineral  from  the  ore  and  of  giving  it  the 
quahties  desired  in  the  market.  And  again,  before  the  metal- 
lurgical engineer  could  extract  the  mineral  from  the  ore,  the 
mining  engineer  must  already  have  made  his  contribution  — 
he  must  have  discovered  the  valuable  mineral  lands,  planned 
a  way  to  mine  the  ore,  directed  the  mining,  and  finally  ren- 
dered the  ore  fit  to  be  further  worked  upon  in  the  smelter. 


The  Pennsylvania  Station,  New  Voriv  City 

In  itself  a  masterpiece,  yet  remarkable  chiefly  because  of  the  tunnels  which  connect 
it  with  New-  Jersey.   In  the  distance  one  sees  the  Hudson  River  and  the  Jersey  hills 

Next,  let  US  consider  our  water  supply,  the  disposal  of  the 
city's  sewage,  the  laying  out  of  streets,  electric  lines,  parks, 
subways,  elevated  roads,  and  other  municipal  necessities  and 
conveniences  ;  there  is  at  once  suggested  to  us  the  vital  con- 
tribution made  by  the  city  engineer.  In  our  thought,  let  us 
take  a  trip  on  the  nearest  railroad,  or  mail  a  letter,  or  send 
some  article  of  merchandise  by  express,  and  straightway  we 
discover  our  indebtedness  to  the  Herculean  labors  of  the  civil 
engineer.  Do  you  realize  that  every  ten  miles  of  railway  of 
the  250,000  miles  in  the  United  States  has  marked  some 


THE  KXGINEERIXG  PROFESSIONS  223 

engineering  achievement  —  some  tunnel  or  bridge,  revetment 
or  cut,  built  under  almost  inconceivable  conditions  and  often 
at  a  cost  of  several  millions  of  dollars !  As  a  fact,  there 
seems  to  be  no  obstacle  or  combination  of  obstacles  too 
great  or  too  complicated  to  be  overcome  by  that  little 
group  of  silent,  earnest  thinkers  and  planners  who  build 
our  railways. 

To  mention  a  bridge  and  a  wonderful  tunnel,  consider  for 
a  moment  spanning  the  St.  Lawrence  River  at  Quebec  with 
a  cantilever  bridge  1800  feet,  or  over  a  third  of  a  mile,  in 
length,  and  boring  the  Simplon  7\mnel  between  Italy  and 
Switzerland,  12]  miles  long  and  in  the  middle  several  diUcs 
below  the  surface  !  In  fact,  this  tunnel  marks  the  culmina- 
tion of  one  of  the  greatest  of  all  civil-engineering  feats, 
the  greatest  tunnel-boring  enterprise  of  any  age,  ancient  or 
modern.  To  come  nearer  home,  let  us  consider  what  an 
enormous  engineering  task  it  was  to  build  the  subaqueous 
tunnels  about  New  York  City,  particularly  those  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad,  with  their  cast-iron  tubes,  23  feet  outside 
diameter,  nearly  one  and  a  sixth  miles  long,  piercing  the 
deep  underbed  of  the  Hudson  River. 

These  are  but  representative  of  the  grandest  bridges  and 
the  most  significant  tunnels  with  which  our  engineers  have 
served  mankind.  If  we  consider  other  bridges,  there  are  four 
noted  ones  in  and  about  New  York  City  alone,  and  there  are 
scores  of  similar  ones  suspended  or  arched  wherever  our 
country  has  thus  far  needed  them.  Of  the  tunnels,  approxi- 
mately 100  miles  have  been  constructed  in  America  alone. 

While  our  railroad  and  other  land  traffic  requires  mighty 
bridges  (like  the  cantilevers  over  the  St.  Lawrence,  in  our 
country,  and  over  the  Firth  of  Forth  in  Scotland)  and  ex- 
tensive tunnels  (like  those  under  the  Hudson  River  at 
New  York  City  or  the  Mont  Cenis  in  the  Alps  or  the  Sim- 
plon, the  greatest  of  them  all),  our  transportation  of  people, 
of  ideas,  and  of  things  across  the  seas  demands  leviathan 


224  OCCUPATIONS 

ships,  serpentine  submarine  cables,  and  short-cut  canals 
surpassing   almost  the   power   of   conception. 

From  1850  to  i860  the  ocean  steamships  were  of  wood, 
with  paddle  wheels,  and  measured  from  275  to  375  feet  in 
length.  That  is,  they  were  all  of  this  size  except  the  Great 
Eastern,  which  was  constructed  especially  for  laying  the  At- 
lantic cable.  At  this  point  we  should  remark  that  since  the 
Great  Eastern  made  possible  the  first  Atlantic  cable,  there 
have  been  laid  in  \arious  parts  of  the  world  a  quarter  of  a 
million  miles  of  submarine  cables  !  This  vessel,  completed 
just  before  1 860,  was  nearly  700  feet  long  ;  but  being  a  side- 
wheeler  and  a  crude  affair  in  other  respects,  it  was  so  un- 
satisfactor)^  that  no  more  ships  were  built  of  that  length  until 
more  than  forty  years  later,  when  the  steel  ships  DeutscJi- 
land  and  Baltic,  with  their  twin  screws  and  many  improve- 
ments, were  launched,  the  first  being  650  feet  and  the  second 
700  feet  in  length.  In  19 13  there  was  completed  the  Ivi- 
perator,  919  feet  long,  and  in  19 14  the  Witcrland,  950 
feet,  and  the  Bismarck,  955  feet  long,  each  equipped  with 
turbine  engines  and  four  screws. 

Our  engineers  have  now  perfected  for  us  mammoth  sea 
palaces,  with  all  the  comforts  and  luxuries  to  be  found  in  a 
modern  city,"  which,  laden  with  thousands  of  human  beings 
and  millions  of  dollars  worth  of  merchandise,  are  dri\-en  from 
continent  to  continent  in  five  or  six  days.  From  small  and 
frail  wooden  ships  propelled  with  paddle  wheels  to  the  gigan- 
tic palatial  Bismarck  —  this  has  been  the  record  achieved 
in  a  half  century  by  the  marine  engineer ! 

But  some  ocean  routes  at  best  are  too  long,  so  the  engi- 
neer was  appealed  to,  and,  as  always,  he  rendered  the  desired 
service.  There  was  dug  at  a  cost  of  $100,000,000  the  90- 
mile  ship  canal  across  the  Isthmus  of  Suez,  and  tlie  route 
around  Africa  became  unnecessary  for  vessels  sailing  east 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Indian  or  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
This  was  a  wonderful  achievement,  and  contributed  beyond 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS  225 

computation  to  the  world's  transportation  facilities.  But  cen- 
turies before  the  Suez  Canal  was  built,  in  fact  some  four 
hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  Columbus  dreamed  of  a  much 
shorter  route  to  the  East  than  the  one  traversed  in  his  day. 
He  was  mistaken  ;  but  his  dream  in  part  at  least  has  been 
realized,  and  that  shorter  route  to  and  from  the  Far  East  has 
become  a  reality,  and  rounding  South  America  is  no  longer 
necessary  for  the  world's  merchant  marine.  The  building  of 
the  Panama  Canal,  which  is  not  so  long  as  the  Suez,  was 
perhaps  ten  times  as  great  an  undertaking  because  of  the 
uneven  surface  to  be  traversed  and  the  greater  depth  and 
width  of  the  waterway.  With  honest  pride  we  can  point  to 
the  fact  that  in  this  most  difficult  engineering  task  —  civil, 
mechanical,  electrical,  and  (of  equal  importance)  sanitary  — 
America  has  achieved  an  unprecedented  success. 

After  we  have  glanced  over  other  prominent  features  of 
the  engineering  field  and  have  noted  the  telegraph,  whether 
by  wire  or  by  cable  or  by  wireless  ;  the  telephone,  long- 
distance, local,  and  wireless ;  the  great  reservoirs,  like  the 
Ashokan,  to  supply  New  York  City,  or  the  Shoshone,  for 
irrigation  purposes  in  Wyoming  ;  the  harnessing  and  dis- 
tributing of  Niagara's  seven  and  a  half  millions  of  horse 
power ;  the  Metropolitan  Life  and  the  Woolworth  buildings 
in  New  York  City,  the  first  50  stories,  or  700  feet,  the 
second  55  stories,  or  750  feet,  above  the  sidewalk;  l^dison's 
invention  of  a  complete  house  made  by  one  gigantic  pouring 
of  cement,  etc.  —  we  begin  to  realize  the  vast  extent  of  our 
indebtedness  to  the  engineer.  He  has  wrought  mightily 
with  the  material  foundations  furnished  by  nature,  and  made 
it  possible  for  the  farmer,  the  mechanic,  and  the  commercial 
man  to  produce  more  easily  the  products  upon  which  our 
well-being  depends. 

Attractiveness  of  engineering  as  a  profession.  The  engi- 
neering professions,  oftering  as  they  do  construction  work 
throughout  our  vast  new  country,  appeal  with  great  force  to 


226  OCCI'TATIONS 

(he  cvc,  and  llirill  llu'  iniai;inalii)n  of  maiiv  a  vigorous, 
nianl\-  youtli.  To  imciit,  to  i.onsirucl,  to  create,  and  that 
in  the  lai"i;c  —  what  could  be  more  worthy  of  our  superb 
youHi;-  manhocxl,  with  its  red  blood  and  big-  muscles  !  So  it 
is   not   strange   that   Mr.   Orison    Swett    INIarden,   for   vears 


Tunnel  inulcr  Uic  Hudson  Kivcr 

lliis  tuiuK'l  lonsists  of  .enormous  iron  rings,  eaeh  hvo  and  a  lialf  feet  lon^  and  weigli- 
ing  fifteen  tons,  bolted  into  place  as  the  huge  shields  with  wiiieh  the  tunnel  was  bored 
were  |>resscd  forward  by  hydraulic  rams.  So  accurately  did  the  enj;ineers  work  that 
the  two  sections,  though  they  started  over  five  miles  apart,  one  in  New  York  and  one 
in  New  Jersey,  met  luuler  the  river  with  a  variation  of  less  than  one  inch.  A  thou- 
sand railroad  trains  now  pass  through  the  Pennsylvania's  four  tubes  daily 

editor  of  S//irrss,  received  more  inquiries  rej;ardinp,"  the  vari- 
ous enj^ineerinj;"  occuixUions  than  anv  other,  and  also  that 
throu<;houl  the  authors'  experience  as  liigh-school  principals, 
they  have  been  plied  with  man\'  more  cjuestions  concerninj^ 
the  choice  t^f  an  engineering;  profession  than  of  any  other 
kiml  of  life  work. 


'I'I[K   KXdlNEKRlXc;    I'ROI'KSSIONS  227 

Development  from  original  military  and  civil  engineer- 
ing. For  centuries  there  were  but  two  kinds  of  engineering 
known  —  military  and  civik  Military  engineering,  which  is 
infinitely  more  complex  to-day  than  formerly,  covers  the 
broad  field  of  designing  and  constructing  all  fortifications, 
vessels,  machinery,  weapons,  etc.  used  in  war  on  land  or 
sea  or  in  the  air.  Ikit  a  treatment  of  military  engineering 
is  outside  of  our  present  scope.  To  get  an  idea  of  the  ex- 
tent and  variety  of  the  work  performed  by  the  civil  engineer 
of  1828,  let  us  read  Thomas  Tredgold's  enumeration  of  the 
engineer's  activities  written  at  that  time  for  the  charter  of 
the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers  of  Great  Britain  :  "  Civil 
engineering  is  the  art  of  directing  the  great  sources  of 
power  in  nature  for  the  use  and  convenience  of  man,  as  the 
means  of  traffic  and  production  in  states,  both  for  external 
and  internal  trade,  as  applied  in  the  construction  of  roads, 
bridges,  aqueducts,  canals,  river  navigation,  and  docks,  for 
internal  intercourse  and  exchange,  and  in  the  construction 
of  ports,  harbors,  breakwaters,  and  lighthouses,  and  in  the 
art  of  navigation  by  artificial  power  for  the  purpose  of  com- 
merce, and  in  the  construction  and  adaptation  of  machinery, 
and  in  the  drainage  of  cities  and  towns." 

Manifestly,  until  recent  years  the  term  '"  civil  engineering  " 
was  regarded  as  covering  the  entire  engineering  field,  with 
the  exception  of  military  engineering ;  but  we  recognize  that 
what  were  then  merely  branches  of  the  calling  are  now  dis- 
tinct and  separate  lines  of  engineering  activity,  and  to-day 
we  distinguish  between  the  civil,  the  municipal  and  sanitary, 
the  mechanical,  the  electrical,  the  mining,  the  metallurgical, 
and  the  architectural. 

General  field  of  work  of  the  engineering  professions.  Here 
we  shall  present  a  general  scheme  of  the  work  performed  by 
each  of  the  engineers  whose  vocations  we  shall  treat,  indicat- 
ing only  the  principal  duties  of  these  men  and  remembering 
that  in  actual  practice  their  activities  often  overlap. 


221 


OCCUPATIONS 


The  civil  engineer  makes  surveys  and  maps  of  land  and  water ; 
plans,  constructs,  and  maintains  roads,  railroads,  canals,  tunnels,  bridges, 
lighthouses,  aqueducts,  hydraulic  works,  irrigation  systems ;  and  im- 
proves rivers  and  harbors.  Besides  the  foregoing,  which  are  his  special- 
ties, he  may  also,  because  of  his  general  training  in  the  engineering  field, 
be  intrusted  with  any  of  the  activities  outlined  below  and  belonging  more 
particularly  to  the  special  engineers,  under  whom  we  have  placed  the  work. 

The  municipal  and  sanitary  engineer  has  to  do  actually  or  potentially 
with  the  designing,  construction,  and  direction  of  city  highways,  parks, 


A  modern  power  plant 

Electricity  in  a  multitude  of  ways  serves  industry.  Everyone  should  know  something 
about  it,  and  the  specialist  will  find  in  it  many  attractive  vocational  opportunities 

waterworks,  sewerage  systems,  ventilation  of  subways  and  tunnels ;  he 
studies  and  gives  expert  advice  on  the  milk  supply,  epidemics,  the 
smoke  nuisance,  etc. 

The  mechanical  engineer  deals  with  the  generation  and  transmission 
(except  electrical)  of  power  from  fuel,  water,  or  wind ;  he  invents  and 
designs  tools,  machines,  engines,  etc.  and  the  means  of  their  manu- 
facture ;  he  has  charge  of  the  design,  construction,  equipment,  and 
operation  of  machine  shops,  manufacturing  plants,  and  power  houses. 

The  electrical  engineer  is  concerned  with  the  design,  manufacture, 
installation,  and  operation  of  electrical  machinery  and  appliances ;  with 


THE  ENT,INEF,RlX(r   PROFESSIONS  229 

the  transmission  of  messages  by  means  of  telephone  and  telegraph  (in- 
cluding cable  and  wireless) ;  with  the  transmission  of  power  (including 
electric  traction,  electrification  of  steam  railroads,  electric-motor  drive, 
and  electric  lighting). 

The  mining  engineer  locates  valuable  mineral  lands;  explores  and 
tests  the  deposits;  adapts  in  each  case  the  proper  methods  of  mining: 
installs  all  machinery,  appliances,  and  power;  plans  and  directs  the 
drilling,  blasting,  breaking,  hauling  and  hoisting,  drainage,  support  of 
overhead  rocks  and  earth,  ventilation,  safety,  lighting,  healthful  condi- 
tions, the  securing  of  profitable  ore-bearing  rock,  ore  dressing  and  mill- 
ing, and  the  mechanical  preparation  of  the  ore. 

The  metallurgical  engineer  tests  and  samples  ores ;  selects  or  adapts 
in  each  case  the  best  methods  of  extracting  the  metal  from  the  ore ;  im- 
proves smelting  machinery;  effects  greater  efficiency  and  economy  in 
the  processes ;  designs  and  installs  the  smelters  and  equipment ;  plans 
and  directs  the  actual  extraction  of  the  metals  and  regulates  their  chemical 
composition,  giving  them  the  distinctive  properties  desired  in  the  market. 

The  industrial  chemist  works  out  and  improves  the  manufacturing 
processes  which  depend  wholly  or  partly  upon  chemical  reactions ;  con- 
verts factory  by-products  into  marketable  commodities ;  designs,  installs, 
and  operates  plants  and  appliances  to  carry  on  chemical  reaction  on  a 
large  scale ;  and  gives  expert  judgment  on  manufacturing  propositions, 
processes,  and  plans  from  the  combined  viewpoint  of  the  chemist  and 
the  engineer. 

The  architectural  engineer,  having  a  practical  understanding  of  the 
trades  involved  in  constructing,  equipping,  and  decorating  buildings  and 
of  all  the  materials  required,  designs  large  buildings  in  accordance  with 
their  proposed  uses  and  the  principles  of  beauty,  economy,  stability,  and 
sanitation,  drafts  working  drawings  and  writes  out  in  detail  the  speci- 
fications of  their  construction  ;  oversees  regularly  the  building  operations 
as  they  proceed ;  and  is  the  deciding  authoritv  on  any  matters  of  dif- 
ference between  the  contractor  and  the  owner. 


THE   CIVIL  ENGINEER 

Among  the  particular  advantages  afforded  by  civil  engi- 
neering may  be  mentioned  a  varied  and  healthy  life,  work 
of  an  interesting  character,  and  the  satisfaction  that  comes 
to  the  designer  and  builder  of  what  will  benefit  mankind. 
Its  most  serious  disadvantages  are  probably  the  nomadic  life 


210  OCCUPATIONS 

frequently  required  of  construction  engineers  and  the  quite 
general  inability  to  amass  a  fortune  in  the  practice  of  one's 
profession.  This  latter  objection,  however,  can  be  obviated 
if  in  addition  to  his  technical  training,  the  engineer  develops 
business  ability. 

Remuneration.  The  young  engineer,  upon  the  completion 
of  a  course  in  a  first-class  technical  school,  starts  at  a  salary 
of  from  $60  to  $100  a  month,  on  the  average  probably  $65. 
The  demand  for  well-trained  engineers  is  always  good,  while 
advancement  in  the  profession  would  probably  be  rated  as 
slow,  but  more  rapid  than  in  law,  medicine,  or  theology.  In 
their  prime,  civil  engineers  of  average  success  could  expect 
an  income  of  from  $2000  to  $4000  a  year,  while  a  limited 
number  of  especially  successful  engineers  have  received  as 
high  as  $50,000.  Not  only  is  the  annual  salary  attractive 
but  the  life  income  is  worthy  of  special  consideration,  as 
the  average  active  career  in  this  healthful  profession  is  often 
as  much  as  forty  years. 

Natural  qualifications  and  training.  Among  the  natural 
qualifications  required  of  the  civil  engineer,  we  should  men- 
tion good  character,  health,  analytical  ability,  executive  ability, 
and  common  sense.  It  would  help  him  much  if  he  could 
add  to  these  a  pleasing  personality  and  the  ability  to  mix 
well  with  other  men,  and  to  present  his  opinions  in  clear, 
vigorous  English.  Besides  a  four-year  course  in  a  high 
school,  the  young  man  preparing  for  civil  engineering 
should  master  the  four  years  of  work  provided  in  a  good 
institute  of  technology,  or  instead  he  might  spend  three 
years  in  a  college,  taking  general-culture  subjects  (including 
pure  mathematics  and  sciences),  and  then  follow  this  with  at 
least  two  years  in  a  first-class  technical  school.  The  cost  in 
the  technical  school  would  depend  very  largely  on  the  one 
attended  ;  at  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology, 
Boston,  it  is  about  $300  per  year  in  addition  to  living 
expenses. 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS  231 

THE   SANITARY  ENGINEER 

Nature  of  the  profession.  Within  the  last  quarter  of  a 
century  a  new  profession  has  come  to  the  fore  —  sanitary 
engineering.  It  represents  the  appHcation  of  a  new  science, 
bacteriolog}-,  to  a  new  product  of  civilization,  the  modern 
city.  To  give  a  simple  adequate  definition  of  sanitary  engi- 
neering is  difficult.  From  an  early  application  to  plumbers 
and  expert  drain  layers,  the  term  has  grown  in  importance 
as  the  works  have  grown  in  magnitude,  until  it  now  includes 
the  operations  of  civil  engineers  engaged  in  providing  public 
water  supplies,  sewerage  systems,  garbage-disposal  plants, 
methods  of  cleaning  streets  and  draining  swamps,  as  well  as 
the  activities  of  those  engineers  whose  interests  are  chiefly  in- 
doors, and  who  are  engaged  in  providing  systems  of  plumbing 
and  ventilation  for  buildings.  The  sanitary  engineer  himself 
might  be  defined  as  one  who  adapts  the  forces  of  nature  to 
the  preser\^ation  of  the  public  health,  through  the  construction 
and  operation  of  engineering  works. 

Training  required.  The  problems  of  the  sanitary  engineer 
are  so  vast  and  so  varied,  they  bring  him  into  contact  with 
so  many  branches  of  science  and  with  so  many  classes  of 
people,  that  an  exceptionally  broad  education  is  demanded. 
Not  only  must  he  be  versed  in  mathematics  and  mechanics 
but  he  must  also  have  a  working  knowledge  of  parts  of 
chemistr}',  biology,  bacteriology,  microscopy,  meteorolog)', 
geology,  hygiene,  preventive  medicine,  and  vital  statistics. 
Unlike  other  branches  of  engineering,  sanitation  is  con- 
cerned not  alone  with  iron  and  stone  and  other  inert  build- 
ing materials  but  with  organic  matter  and  living  beings. 
The  purification  of  water  and  sewage  is  due  largely  to  bio- 
logical action,  and  a  knowledge  of  bacterial  processes  is 
scarcely  less  important  to  the  sanitary  engineer  than  that  of 
the  laws  governing  the  flow  of  water  in  pipes  and  the 
strength  of  materials. 


232  OCCUPATIONS 

Demand  for  sanitary  engineers  and  associates.  Sanitary 
science  is  becoming  so  important  that  tliere  is  room  not  only 
for  the  constructing  engineer  but  also  for  the  sanitary  spe- 
cialist, and  for  men  whose  duty  it  is  to  operate  the  works 
after  they  are  built  —  to  take  charge  of  the  water  filters  and 
the  sewage  treatment  plants,  to  manage  the  garbage  works, 
and  to  superintend  the  cleaning  of  streets  and  buildings. 
The  need  of  capable  managers  of  sanitary  plants  will  soon 
be  a  pressing  one,  and  our  technical  schools  must  be  pre- 
pared to  furnish  men  for  this  service.  It  is  believed  that 
young  men  who  study  sanitary  engineering  with  thorough- 
ness will  find  that  it  affords  them  opportunities  for  useful 
service  and  a  comfortable  livelihood. 


THE   MECHANICAL  ENGINEER 

Professor  Edward  F.  Miller,  of  the  Massachusetts  Insti- 
tute of  Technology,  writes  concerning  mechanical  engineer- 
ing as  follows  : 

Demand  and  remuneration.  TIk'  Inslitute  has  for  about  ten  years  had 
a  faculty  committee  whose  duty  it  was  to  see  that  the  graduates  were 
properly  placed.  The  demand  for  "graduates  has  increased  so  that  at  the 
present  time  nearly  all  of  the  graduates  in  mechanical  engineering  are 
placed  before  their  graduation.  During  the  present  year  every  man  had 
at  least  three  openings  and  some  as  many  as  seven.  The  average  would 
be  somewhere  around  five. 

Mechanical  engineering  is  probably  one  of  the  broadest  of  the  engi- 
neering subjects,  civil  and  electrical  being  minor  details  and  specialties 
of  mechanical  engineering.  This  may  be  one  reason  why  mechanical 
engineers  fit  into  so  many  positions.  The  engineering  professions  are 
not  as  well  paid  as  are  certain  other  lines  of  work.  In  general,  the  men 
graduating  start  in  at  a  salary  of  from  $65  to  $75  a  month  which  in- 
creases, so  that  at  the  end  of  three  years  the  average  salary  of  the  entire 
class  would  probably  be  from  fifteen  hundred  to  eighteen  hundred,  some 
men,  of  course,  getting  salaries  of  five  to  six  thousand.  There  have  been 
statistics  compiled  by  certain  of  the  classes,  as  to  the  rate  of  increase  of 
salary  of  certain  classes,  and  the  average  salary  at  the  end  of  ten  years 


THE  engineering;  proeessioxs         233 

has,  according  to  my  recollection,  been  something  over  five  thousand. 
This  average  was  no  doubt  raised  by  certain  men  in  the  class  who 
received  rather  unusually  high  salaries. 

Natural  qualifications  and  training.  As  to  the  qualifications,  a 
man  should  have,  of  course,  a  liking  for  mechanical  work,  and  should 
especially  enjoy  both 
mathematics  and  physics. 
A  man  who  has  difficulty 
with  mathematics  or 
geometry  is  not  likely 
to  succeed  in  mechani- 
cal engineering.  As  to 
the  preparation  required, 
nearly  all  the  high 
schools  give  a  man  a  suf- 
ficient preliminary  prepa- 
ration. .\t  present  a  great 
many  men  are  entering 
the  Institute  of  Technol- 
ogy after  having  studied 
one  or  two  years  or,  in 
some  cases,  after  having 
taken  a  degree  at  some 
college.  These  men  usu- 
ally enter  in  the  third 
year.  By  this  means  the 
men  get  the  advantage 
of  college  life  and  a  good 
broad  training,  and  are 
better  able  to  take  hold 

of  the  special  work  than  some  of  the  younger  men  who  have  not 
had  the  broadening  influence  and  training  of  the  college. 


A  public-service  power  house 

This  plant  supplies  light  to  the  city  and  power  to 
the  street-car  lines.   Such  plants  are  now  to  be  found 
in  every  city  of  any  size,  and  after  a  time  will  be  pos- 
sessed by  even  the  small  towns 


THE   MINING  ENG1NKP:R 


To  many  men  no  vocation  affords  so  much  fascination  and 
such  varied  and  interesting  experiences  as  that  of  the  mining 
engineer.  Its  disadvantages  are  its  long  periods  of  absence 
from  home  and  civilization,  the  gambling  tendency  which 
may  attract  some  men  engaged  in  mining  promotions,  and 


234  OCCUPATIONS 

the  liability  to  personal  injuries,  which,  though  considerable, 
are  perhaps  no  more  common  here  than  in  other  fields  of 
engineering. 

Remuneration  and  demand.  Graduates  of  mining  schools 
start  at  a  salary  of  from  $60  to  $100  per  month,  and  even 
more  in  exceptional  cases.  After  the  first  year  they  should 
receive  from  $100  to  $150,  which  would  increase  with  the 
individual's  ability,  quite  rapidly  in  the  majority  of  cases, 
until  in  their  prime  men  of  average  success  would  have  a 
yearly  income  of  from  $3000  to  ^5000.  Of  course,  here 
as  in  other  professions,  the  few  who  are  exceptionally  suc- 
cessful sometimes  receive  anywhere  from  $10,000  up  to 
^50,000.  The  demand  for  engineers  is  excellent,  many 
men  being  placed  before  graduation  and  as  a  rule  all 
graduates  finding  steady  work  during  the  long  career  of 
from  thirty  to  forty  years  which  is  often  the  lot  of  the 
mining  engineer. 

Personal  qualifications  and  training.  The  young  man  pur- 
posing to  enter  this  profession  should  have  good  health  and 
a  sound  constitution ;  he  should  be  willing  to  undergo  physi- 
cal exertion  and  to  do  without  many  of  the  refinements  and 
social  pleasures  available  in  cities.  On  the  other  hand,  he 
should  also  be  able  to  enjoy  thoroughly  the  exhilaration  of 
life  in  the  open  air  and  of  struggle  against  the  forces  of 
nature.  He  should  be  a  close  observer,  a  clear  thinker,  with 
sound  judgment  and  some  originality,  capable  of  planning, 
and  able  to  handle  men. 

In  addition  to  completing  the  high-school  course,  he 
should  spend  four  years  in  a  first-class  mining  school, 
where  the  cost,  depending  on  the  institution  selected,  will  be 
from  $500  per  year  up,  including  tuition,  board,  and  room. 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS  235 

THE   INDUSTRIAL  CHEMIST 

While  there  are  in  the  United  States  to-day  more  than 
100,000  doctors  and  125,000  lawyers,  there  are  only  10,000 
chemists  to  carry  on  a  work  vastly  more  important  than  liti- 
gation or  its  prevention,  and  equally  as  beneficial  as  medi- 
cine to  the  life  of  the  ordinary  community.  Do  we  realize 
that  the  annual  production  of  the  chemical  industries  in  our 
country  is  already  almost  equal  in  value  to  our  agricultural 
products  and  that  it  is  increasing  most  rapidly  ?  And  do  we 
also  appreciate  the  fact  that  many  of  these  benefits  or  victo- 
ries in  the  field  of  chemistry  have  come,  as  many  others  will 
come,  simply  because  our  chemists  have  never  faltered  in  fol- 
lowing for  years  the  slender  and  often  broken  thread  of  an 
hypothesis  here  and  there  through  labyrinth  after  labyrinth 
of  difficult  research  work  ? 

Remuneration  and  demand.  After  a  university  course 
the  young  industrial  chemist  starts  at  a  salary  of  from  $720 
to  ^1200  per  year,  according  to  his  ability.  The  demand 
for  chemists  is  such  that  capable  men  are  placed  before 
they  graduate.  The  opportunity  for  advancement  likewise 
is  rapid.  The  introduction  of  efficiency  methods  in  one 
paper  mill  caused  the  appointment  of  six  additional  chem- 
ists. The  recent  tariff  act  is  forcing  manufacturers  to  im- 
prove their  products  and  to  devise  economies,  and  hence  is 
requiring  additional  chemists.  Many  factories  are  promoting 
chemists  already  on  the  staff  to  take  charge  of  new  depart- 
ments and  new  laboratories  —  here  agam  causing  a  demand 
for  additional  men.  The  salaries  of  men  of  average  ability 
in  their  prime  present  an  exceedingly  wide  range.  Men 
who  have  good  business  ability,  in  addition  to  their  profes- 
sional training,  obtain  high  executive  positions  and  some 
become  officers  in  our  gigantic  industrial  corporations.  In 
general,  industrial  chemistry  pays  its  capable  men  perhaps 
the  best  incomes  of  any  of  the  engineering  professions. 


236  OCCUPATIONS 

Personal  qualifications  and  training.  To  be  successful  in 
this  profession  one  should  possess  an  inborn  liking  for  or 
bent  towards  the  science  of  chemistry.  He  should  be  so 
constituted  that  the  most  interesting  study  in  the  high  school 
and  in  his  freshman  year  at  college  is  chemistry.  The  par- 
ticular group  of  mental  attributes  that  should  be  his  are  not 
so  different  from  those  needed  for  success  in  other  lines  of 
engineering  work  —  well-developed  powers  of  observation, 
good  reasoning  faculties,  keen  insight,  the  commercial 
sense,  a  strong  imagination,  and,  finally,  strong  self-reliance 
and  initiative. 

Following  a  high-school  course,  he  should  receive  from 
four  to  six  years'  training  in  university  and  technical  school. 
If  he  can  afford  the  expenditure  of  time  and  money,  he 
will  find  three  years  of  academic  work  and  three  years  of 
technical  training  none  too  much  to  equip  him  adequately 
for  his  profession.  Tuition,  board,  and  room  in  a  good 
technical  school  cost  from  $500  up,  the  state  universities 
being  the  least  expensive. 

1'  H  E   A  R  C  H I T  E  CT  l^  K  A 1 .   E  N  G I X  E  E  R 

Professor  Frederick  \V.  Revels  of  Syracuse  University, 
one  of  the  two  architects  who  designed  the  great  sta- 
dium at  S\-racusc,  makes  the  following  statement  concerning 
his  profession  : 

Nature  of  this  profession.  Architecture  as  a  profession  is.  in  a  sense. 
ihe ^'/ar/es/  and  broadesf  of  them  all,  in  that  it  requires  the  best  prep- 
aration possible  and  eventually  a  most  comprehensive  knowledge  of  the 
varied  activities  of  life  controlling  the  requirements  of  design  or  con- 
struction for  every  conceivable  sort  of  building.  This  sounds  big : 
but  these  requirements  are  being  met  by  some  of  our  younger  Amer- 
ican architects  as  a  result  of  extensive  preparation  and  training  at  home 
and  abroad. 

The  true  architect  is  an  artist,  and  the  gratification  of  creating  an 
artistic  design  is  the  thing  he  strives  after.    There  is  still  great  need  for 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS 


^17 


just  such  trained  architects  and  artists,  and  this  need  will  increase  as 
our  country  expands  and  prospers.  We  are  but  at  the  beginning  of  our 
architectural  development,  and  the  American  public  is  coming  more  and 
more  to  understand  the  importance  of  employing  a  first-class  architect 
when  it  contemplates  building  a  home,  a  place  of  business,  or  a  great  rail- 
road terminal.  The  architect  is  the  man  who  possesses,  or  should  possess, 
the  necessary  knowledge  and  experience  to  design  and  carry  out  a  great 
operation  such  as  the  New  York  Central  Terminal  Station  in  New  York. 


The  Grand  Central  Terminal,  New  York 

An  architectural  triumph  not  only  in  the  beauty  and  convenience  of  the  buildings 
but  also  in  the  fact  that  while  the  plans  were  being  executed  800  trains  were  kept 
running  and  100,000  passengers  handled  daily.  Trains  pulled  by  electric  locomo- 
tives reach  this  station  from  the  north,  but  the  tracks  are  depressed  and  it  is  planned 
to  erect  gigantic  office  buildings  above  them.  Under  the  street  in  front  of  this  station 
run  three  tiers  of  subways 


Remuneration.  Men  of  ability  and  some  practical  experience  are 
securing  good  positions  upon  graduating  from  their  course  in  archi- 
tecture. A  fair  beginning  salary  is  $12  to  $15  per  week,  which  increases 
to  $25  and  $35  or  more.  Some  head  draftsmen  in  the  larger  offices  are 
paid  as  high  as  $75  per  week.  A  practicing  architect  is  paid  a  commission 
on  the  cost  of  building  or  operation.  The  fee  of  the  American  Institute 
of  Architects  ranges  from  5  per  cent  to  6  per  cent  of  the  total  cost. 


2  38  OCCUPATIONS 

Training  and  its  cost.  Any  young  man  who  contemplates  going 
into  this  profession  ought  to  have  the  best  preparation  possible.  It  will 
tell  in  after  years.  First  comes  the  high-school  work,  with  special  attention 
to  drawing,  mathematics,  and  some  modern  language,  French  preferred. 
If  possible  he  should  combine  a  college  academic  course  with  a  course 
in  architecture.  Many  cannot  take  the  two  courses,  and  the  next  best 
thing  is  a  thorough  preparatory  course  and  the  college  course  in  archi- 
tecture, and  after  that  travel  and  study  abroad  if  possible.  Foreign  travel 
and  study  generally  come  a  few  years  after  graduation,  when  considerable 
experience  has  been  attained. 

The  cost  varies  considerably,  being  perhaps  ?400  to  $450  per  year 
minimum.  Quite  a  few  students  work  their  way  entirely.  The  catalogues 
of  the  various  schools  will  be  sent  to  anyone  on  application  ;  they  contain 
much  information  as  to  cost,  etc.  The  college  preparation  should  be  first- 
class  and  thorough.    Most  of  the  high  schools  fulfill  the  requirements. 


PREPARATION   FOR  AN   ENGINEERING  CAREER 

The  need  of  reliability  and  expert  training.  From  the 
foregoing  survey  of  the  engineering  field  you  must  surely 
have  been  impressed  with  the  vast  importance  of  the  work 
and  with  the  great  variety  of  its  forms.  If  the  civil  engineer 
who  designs  a  bridge  makes  a  mistake,  his  error  may  cost 
thousands  of  dollars  and  many  human  lives.  If  the  metal- 
lurgical engineer  errs  in  his  judgment,  the  result  may  be  the 
removal  of  a  blast  furnace,  with  its  equipment,  costing  a  half 
million  dollars  or  more.  Engineers,  whose  activities  are  on 
such  a  grand  scale  that  more  than  any  other  class  of  workers 
they  affect  the  face  of  Nature  and  her  resources,  must  have 
brains  and  a  most  accurate,  thoroughgoing  technical  educa- 
tion, whether  they  lay  out  railroads,  design  factories  and 
their  equipment,  dig  canals,  build  skyscrapers,  or  improve 
the  process  of  making  synthetic  rubber. 

Necessary  education.  If  you  propose  to  become  an  engi- 
neer, )ou  should  early  in  )our  high-school  course  consult 
the  catalogue  of  the  particular  engineering  school  you  are 
likcl}'  to  enter,    l^ut  to  give  a  good  idea  of  what  subjects 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS  239 

you  will  probably  need  for  college  entrance,  we  have  here 
listed  those  required  by  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of 
Technology  of  all  its  entering  freshmen  whatever  engineer- 
ing course  they  plan  to  pursue :  algebra  A,  algebra  B 
(through  quadratics  and  progressions),  plane  geometry, 
solid  geometry,  physics,  French  (two  years),  German  (two 
years),  English  (three  or  four  years),  United  States  or 
ancient  history  (one  year),  and  any  tivo  of  the  following 
elective  subjects  :  French  (third  year),  German  (third  year), 
Spanish  (two  years),  Latin  I  (through  four  books  of  Caesar 
or  an  equivalent),  Latin  II  (either  six  orations  of  Cicero  or 
six  books  of  Virgil),  English  (an  additional  year),  any  college- 
entrance  history  (an  additional  year),  chemistry,  mechanical 
drawing  (one  year),  mechanical  drawing  and  mechanic  arts 
combined  (one  year),  or  bi'ology.  These  are  such  subjects 
as  should  be  thoroughly  mastered  by  the  prospective  engi- 
neer before  entering  his  chosen  engineering  school.  To 
make  more  emphatic  the  need  of  a  thorough  preparation,  let 
us  consider  that  while  most  engineering  schools  have  four- 
year  courses.  Harvard  and  Columbia  have  six-year  engineer- 
ing courses,  and  that  the  Sheffield  Scientific  School  has 
lengthened  its  course  to  five  years.  Let  us  further  bear  in 
mind  that  some  engineering  schools  having  four-year  courses 
give  such  inferior  training  that  their  graduates  are  liable  not 
to  succeed  in  practicing  their  profession. 

The  cost  of  an  engineering  course.  To  get  definite  in- 
formation concerning  the  cost  of  an  engineering  course,  it 
is  best  to  WTite  to  the  registrar  of  the  school  you  plan  to 
enter ;  but  to  give  you  some  idea  of  the  cost,  the  following 
figures  are  presented  :  at  the  Columbia  Schools  of  Mines, 
Engineering,  and  Chemistry,  New  York  City,  and  at  the 
Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  Boston,  the  annual 
expenses  for  board,  tuition,  books,  etc.,  but  not  including 
personal  or  traveling  expenses,  range  between  $500  and 
$1000. 


240 


OCCUPATIONS 


If  a  boy  has  the  natural  qualifications  for  an  engineer, 
but  considers  the  above  expense  prohibitive,  he  may  attend 
a  cooperative  course,  where  he  spends  alternate  weeks  in  the 
university  and  in  the  shop.  At  the  University  of  Cincinnati, 
Ohio,  students  are  paid  for  their  services  in  the  shop  just  as 

are  other  employees. 
The  wages  run  from 
10  cents  an  hour, 
for  beginners,  to  19 
cents  for  seniors.  If 
for  any  reason  an  en- 
gineering course  is 
preferred  in  a  tech- 
nical school  which 
offers  no  shop  work, 
with  its  attendant 
wages,  there  are  the 
summer  vacations  in 
which  to  earn  money, 
but  one  can  earn  little 
during  the  regular 
college  year  on  ac- 
count of  the  sever- 
ity of  this  course. 
Again,  after  a  year 
or  two  at  college  one 
can  often  get  good 
pay  if  obliged  to 
work  for  a  time  in 
order  to  have  sufficient  money  with  which  to  complete  the 
course.    Where  there  's  a  will  there  are  many  ways. 

The  demand  for  expert  engineers.  The  ranks  of  the  en- 
gineering profession  are  not  overcrowded.  They  are  in 
great  and  increasing  need  of  recruits  of  the  right  sort  — 
whole-hearted  manly  fellows,  strong  in  initiative,  self-reliant, 


A  famous  technical  man 

Mr.  Edison  combines  rare  technical  ability  with  un- 
usual business  sagacity.  His  various  patents  fill  a 
dozen  volumes  in  the  government  patent  office,  yet 
as  a  general  rule  he  devotes  himself  only  to  inven- 
tions which  pay 


THE  engineering;  professions  241 

resourceful,  indomitably  persevering,  mentally  broad  and 
keen,  alert,  accurate,  well-trained,  lovers  of  science,  of 
mechanics,  of  construction,  of  conservation,  of  progress.  In 
a  recent  interview  Thomas  A.  Edison  is  quoted  as  saying  : 

We  do  not  have  enough  men  whose  training  has  been  such  as  to  en- 
able them  to  cope  with  the  actual  conditions  of  life.  We  do  not  have 
enough  men  who  understand  from  A  to  Z  the  science  of  business.  Most 
of  all,  we  have  not  enough  engineers.  In  industry  and  in  business  we 
need  more  men  with  engineers'  training.  America  needs  chemists,  en- 
gineers, all  sorts  of  technically  educated  men,  because  this  is  a  new 
country  with  industries  to  open  up  and  develop,  and  because  it  is  a 
commercial  country  with  big  business  to  manage  in  the  right  way. 

Numerous  opportunities  in  the  engineering  field.  Engi- 
neering, with  its  numerous  opportunities  offered  in  related 
though  quite  distinct  departments,  is  an  attractive  profes- 
sion. In  this  vast  field  one  may  work  as  civil  engineer  out 
of  doors,  away  from  civilization,  or  indoors  as  industrial 
chemist  in  the  throbbing  heart  of  civilization.  While  he 
always  deals  in  large  values,  his  work  may  be  constructing 
a  gigantic  bridge,  tunnel,  or  dam,  or  constructing  in  the 
laboratory  a  new  compound  of  infinitesimal  atoms  and  mole- 
cules. If  you  are  mentally  alert,  trustworthy  and  accurate. 
and  indomitably  industrious,  —  if  you  are  great  enough  and 
sufficiently  well  trained  to  work  with  efficiency  in  conserv- 
ing, utilizing,  increasing,  or  improving  the  resources  and 
forces  of  nature,  —  then  consider  seriously  some  part  of  the 
vast  engineering  field  as  your  life  work. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Is  there  in  or  near  your  town  or  city  any  long  bridge,  tunnel,  or 
canal,  any  large  dam,  any  high  trestle,  or  other  prominent  piece  of  engi- 
neering? If  so,  find  out  if  possible  how  the  engineer  solved  the  problem 
of  the  best  way  to  construct  it. 

2.  What  civil  engineer  selected  the  route  of  the  nearest  important 
railroad  ?  W^hat  were  the  most  serious  difficulties  he  met  in  building 
this  road.''    What  was  the  principal  need  for  the  road? 


242  OCCUPATIONS 

3.  Does  your  own  or  a  near-by  city  employ  a  municipal  or  sanitary 
engineer?  If  so,  what  are  his  duties  and  what  is  his  salary?  Of  what 
engineering  school  is  he  a  graduate  ? 

4.  Is  there  any  large  industry  in  your  neighborhood  that  employs  an 
industrial  chemist  ?  If  so,  learn  from  him  his  specific  duties,  and  whether 
he  has  yet  converted  any  by-product  into  a  marketable  commodity. 

5.  Is  there  any  large  manufacturing  plant  near  you  that  employs  a 
mechanical  or  an  electrical  engineer  ?  If  so,  learn  from  him  his  specific 
duties.  Where  was  he  graduated?  Would  he  advise  you  to  enter  the 
same  profession  ?  What  subjects  in  your  high-school  course  would  he 
advise  you  to  emphasize  ? 

6.  Are  you  near  any  valuable  mines  that  are  now  being  worked  ? 
Did  a  mining  engineer  discover  them  ?  Does  he  still  direct  the  mining  ? 
Is  a  metallurgical  engineer  employed  now  in  directing  the  preparation 
of  the  mineral  for  market? 

7.  Show  the  value  to  society  of  the  civil  engineer,  the  mechanical 
engineer,  the  electrical  engineer,  the  industrial  chemist,  the  mining 
engineer,  and  the  metallurgical  engineer. 

8.  What  buildings  in  your  neighborhood  were  planned  by  a  build- 
ing contractor?  by  an  architectural  engineer?  Which  of  the  two  men 
charged  more  for  his  plans?  W^hy  were  his  plans  worth  more  than 
the  other  man's? 

9.  What  building  trade  is  an  excellent  stepping  stone  to  architec- 
tural engineering  ?  to  sanitary  engineering  ?  to  electrical  engineering  ? 

10.  What  machine  trade  is  an  excellent  preparation  (on  the  practical 
side)  for  mechanical  engineering?  W^hat  technical  education  would  also 
be  necessary? 

11.  After  a  careful  comparison  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages 
of  them  all,  which  one  of  the  engineering  professions  appeals  to  you  as 
the  most  desirable  ?    Give  reasons  for  your  preference. 

12.  Among  engineers,  as  among  building  tradesmen,  there  are  men 
who  have  advanced  to  the  position  of  contractor.  If  there  are  any 
engineering  contractors  in  your  neighborhood,  learn  what  sort  of  con- 
tracts they  take  and,  if  possible,  find  out  the  details  of  some  recent 
contract  they  have  taken. 

13.  Do  you  think  the  engineering  schools  of  the  future  will  generally 
adopt  the  cooperative  system  of  instruction  or  the  part-school  and  part- 
shop  system?  What  advantages  has  this  part-time  schooling  plan  over 
the  full-time  plan?  (See  catalogue  of  the  University  of  Cincinnati 
Engineering  School.) 


THE  ENGINEERING  PROFESSIONS  243 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

GoDDARD,  DwiGHT.  Eminent  Engineers.  Norman  W.  Henley  Pub- 
lishing Company,  New  York.    $1.50. 

Handbook  for  Chemists.^ 

Handbook  for  Civil  Engineers.^ 

Handbook  for  Concrete  Engineers.^ 

Handbook  for  Electrical  Engineers.^ 

MoRAN,  Selhy  a.  Over  100  Ways  to  Work  One's  Way  through 
College.    The  University  Press,  Ann  Arbor,  Mich.    $1.00. 

SloanEjT.  O'Connor.  How  to  become  a  Successful  Electrician.  Norman 
W.  Henley  Publishing  Company,  New  York.    $1.00. 

Williams,  Archibald.  How  it  is  Done.  Sully  &  Kleinteich,  New 
York.    $1.20. 

Williams,  Archibald.  How  it  Works.  Sully  &  Kleinteich,  New 
York.  $1.20. 

Free  Pamphlets 

Announcement  of  the  Cooperative  Courses,  College  of  Engineering, 
1912-1913.    University  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

Booklet  on  "  The  Metropolitan  Life  Building,"  The  Metropolitan  Life 
Insurance  Company,  New  York,  and  on  "  The  Woolworth  Build- 
ing."   The  Atlantic  Terra  Cotta  Company,  Broadway,  New  York. 

Bulletin  on  "Sanitary  Engineering  at  Harvard  University."  Harvard 
University,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Bulletin  on  "  Suggestions  concerning  the  Choice  of  a  Course  in  Engi- 
neering."   Carnegie  Institute  of  Technology,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

Bulletin  on  "  The  Technical  Opportunities  of  Southern  California." 
Throop  Polytechnic  Institute,  Pasadena,  Cal. 

Bulletins  on  "  Civil  Engineering,"  "  Mechanical  Engineering,"  "  Min- 
ing Engineering,"  "  Applied  Chemistry  and  Architecture,"  "  Struc- 
tural and  Concrete  Engineering."  International  Correspondence 
Schools,  Scranton,  Pa. 

Catalogues  from  engineering  schools. 

Photographic  Reproductions  of  Work  of  Graduates,  June,  191 3.  Rens- 
selaer Institute  of  Technology. 

Register  of  Former  Students,  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology. 

^  International  Textbook  Company,  Scranton,  Pa.    50  cents  each. 


244  OCCUPATIONS 

Pi;riodical.s 

Architecture  and  Building.  Monthly.  William  T.  Comstock  Com- 
pany, New  York.    $2.00  per  year. 

Concrete-Cement  Age.  Monthly.  Concrete-Cement  Age  Publishing 
Company,  Detroit,  Mich,    f.1.50  per  year. 

Engi7ieeri?ig  N'ews.  Weekly.  Hill  Publishing  Company,  New  York. 
$5.00  per  year. 

The  Engineering  Magasine.  Monthly.  The  Engineering  Magazine 
Company,  New  York.    $3.00  per  year. 

The  Journal  of  Industrial  and  Engineering  Chemistry.  Monthly. 
The  American  Chemical  Society,  Easton,  Pa.    $6.00  per  year. 

Popular  Mechanics  Magazine.  Monthly.  Popular  Mechanics  Publish- 
ing Company,  Chicago.    $1.50  per  year. 

The  Scietitific  American.  Weekly.  Munn  and  Company,  New  York. 
$3.00  per  year. 

The  ]]\}rld^s  Work.  Monthly.  Doubleday,  Page  and  Company, 
Garden  City,  N.Y.    <3.oo  per  year. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  AND  ALLIED 
OCCUPATIONS 

Each  calling  sends  forth  its  own  peculiar  appeal.  —  Melville  W. 
Fuller 

Each  shall  follow  with  cheerfulness  the  profession  which  he  best 
understands.  —  Horace 

Personal  services  rendered  by  the   learned   professions. 

There  is  a  certain  body  of  workmen  who  come  into  closer 
personal  relations  with  us  than  do  men  in  other  vocations. 
The  doctor  cares  for  the  health  of  the  body,  conquers  dis- 
ease, and  postpones  death  ;  he  relieves  physical  suffering, 
and  often  soothes  a  distressed  mind.  The  dentist  cares  for 
the  teeth  ;  but  his  functions  are  far  more  important  than 
they  would  at  first  seem,  for  the  mouth  is  the  gateway 
to  the  body.  The  pharmacist,  cooperating  with  doctor  and 
dentist,  and  prescribing  on  his  own  account  for  a  score  of 
minor  ills,  is  another  worker  for  health. 

But  men  have  minds  as  well  as  bodies.  The  teacher 
takes  all  the  intellectual,  moral,  and  industrial  wisdom  that 
mankind  has  achieved  and  garnered  during  the  past,  and 
by  instructing  the  youth  of  to-day  enables  them  to  start  on  a 
higher  plane  than  their  fathers  did.  The  librarian,  close  to 
the  teacher  and  close  to  the  community,  provides  a  means 
of  contmued  growth  for  old  and  young  alike.  The  journalist, 
quick  of  eye  and  graphic  in  style,  mirrors  the  swiftly  moving 
present  on  the  printed  page  so  that  he  who  runs  may  read. 
The  minister,  priest,  and  rabbi,  warm  of  heart,  emphasize 
eternal  values  and  ser\'e  as  moral  balance  wheels.  The  lawyer 

245 


246  OCCITPATIONS 

discerns  the  needs  of  men  in  relation  to  the  complicated 
mechanisms  of  personal  and  property  rights  which  they  have 
developed,  and  shows  how  best  to  use  this  social  machinery. 
Such  are  the  professional  men,  all  of  them  workers  and 
true  producers.  For  just  as  a  manufacturer  produces  a 
pump,  as  a  farmer  raises  a  bushel  of  wheat,  these  men  pro- 
duce that  which  people  want  —  in  this  case,  personal  services. 

THE  PHYSICIAN 

As  you  have  seen  the  doctor  riding  about  in  his  automo- 
bile, or  charging  a  big  price  for  the  prescription  it  seemed 
so  easy  to  write,  the  idea  that  medicine  was  the  vocation  of 
vocations  may  have  possessed  you.  But  do  not  be  too  hasty 
in  your  decision.  There  are  certain  qualifications  which  the 
doctor  should  have  or  failure  may  be  his.  Let  us  consider 
some  of  these. 

Qualifications,  i.  A  vigorous  body.  The  doctor  should 
have  a  strong  and  vigorous  physique.  If  his  practice  is 
large,  his  work  is  especially  trying.  Calls  may  come  at  any 
hour  of  the  day  or  night,  rendering  his  hours  for  meals  and 
sleep  very  irregular.  It  is  only  a  sturdy  physique  that  will  en- 
able him  to  stand  this  without  becoming  nervous  and  irritable, 
two  things  which  will  lessen  his  success.  The  physician  whose 
body  supplies  him  with  abounding  vitality  can,  in  spite  of  tax- 
ing demands,  keep  a  clear  brain  and  a  strong  personality. 

2.  A  cheerful  temperament.  The  physician  should  have 
an  even  temperament  and  a  sanguine  disposition.  Since  he 
is  quite  frequently  called  upon  in  emergencies,  no  uncertain 
disposition,  no  "falling  all  to  pieces,"  can  serve  as  a  basis 
for  his  medical  reputation.  In  fact,  it  is  by  his  evenness  of 
temper  that  he  restores  the  confidence  which  upon  his  arrival 
is  often  sadly  lacking. 

No  less  important  is  his  optimistic  nature.  The  physician 
whose  face  radiates  sunshine,  whose  step  is  buoyant,  whose 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  247 

handshake  is  cordial,  cures  by  his  visits  quite  as  much  as 
by  his  pills.  No  fact  in  psychology  is  more  clearly  demon- 
strated than  that  the  mind  influences  the  body.  If  the 
patient's  mind,  naturally  melancholy  and  irritable  during 
sickness,  can  be  brought  into  a  different  state,  cure  is  more 
rapid  and  more  certain. 

Young  men  planning  to  be  doctors,  consequently,  should 
cultivate  a  habit  of  looking  on  the  bright  side  of  things. 
They  should  think  good  thoughts ;  read  inspiring  books ; 
sympathize  with  those  afflicted ;  and,  not  letting  their 
patients'  troubles  cloud  their  own  minds,  they  should  hold 
firmly  the  sanguine  view  that  all  goes  well. 

They  should  also  develop  the  ability  to  meet  people 
easily  and  congenially.  The  student  who  isolates  himself 
until  he  is  unsocial,  out  of  touch  with  men,  may  know 
medicine,  but  he  will  not  win  success.  But  the  vigorous 
young  man,  adaptable  and  cordial,  has  a  source  of  power 
within  himself. 

3.  Honesty  of  purpose.  Honesty  of  purpose  is  especially 
important  to  one  who  enters  into  such  intimate  knowledge 
of  his  patients'  lives  as  does  the  doctor.  It  is  because 
men's  hopes  are  easily  raised  over  promises  of  health,  the 
sick  being  noted  for  both  extreme  credulity  and  extreme 
suspicion,  that  healing  has  always  been  a  choice  field  for 
the  impostor.  Patent-medicine  fakirs  have  poured  tons  of 
vile  literature  into  mail  sacks,  and  barrels  of  equalh'  vile 
medicine  into  bottles  ;  while  various  "  healers  "  have  sprung 
up  like  mushrooms,  their  business  being  about  as  substan- 
tial. The  young  doctor,  of  all  professional  men,  should  rest 
upon  no  mere  tricks  of  the  trade  ;  his  stand  should  be  on 
the  side  of  those  who  seek  to  elevate  the  medical  profession 
by  ostracizing  all  tricksters.  Let  him  keep  as  a  sacred  trust 
what  is  revealed  to  his  professional  ears.  Let  him  beware 
of  bragging,  of  false  claims,  or  of  pretended  cures.  People 
in  general  w'ill  give  him  the  credit  which  is  properly  his. 


248  OCCUPATIONS 

4,  Love  for  the  zvork.  The  would-be  doctor  should  have 
a  great  love  for  his  work.  It  is  not  enough  that,  when  a 
boy,  he  set  the  cat's  broken  leg  or  liked  the  smell  of  medi- 
cine bottles.  There  are  years  of  toil  and  sacrifice  ahead  of 
the  young  man  who  starts  out  to  become  a  physician,  and 
only  an  inspiring  and  abiding  devotion  to  healing  his  fellows 
can  keep  him  persistently  at  his  task  until  he  reaches  the  goal. 

It  is  evident  that  these  four  qualities  are  not  possessed  by 
every  boy  who,  struck  by  the  ease  with  which  some  doctor 
sets  a  bone  and  draws  a  big  fee,  decides  at  once  to  enter 
medicine  ;  but  if  he  does  possess  the  necessary  qualifications, 
he  may  with  profit  consider  the  next  step. 

Preparation.  Medical  training  has  heretofore  been  left 
to  medical  educational  authorities  without  adequate  super- 
vision. And  as  a  consequence,  when  the  Carnegie  Founda- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Teaching  made  a  first-hand 
investigation  of  these  schools  in  1909,  some  of  its  findings 
were  surprising.  For  instance,  the  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons  at  San  Francisco  and  the  Chattanooga  Medical 
College  had  only  one  microscope  apiece.  The  Mississippi 
Medical  College  "did  not,  when  visited,  own  a  dollar's  worth 
of  apparatus  of  any  description  whatsoever."  At  the  Eclectic 
Medical  College  of  New  York  the  entire  outfit  for  teaching 
experimental  physiology  was  kept  in  a  little  black  box  about 
as  big  as  a  safety-razor  case.  The  outfit  in  pathology  and 
bacteriology  at  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons, 
Denver,  consisted  of  an  empty  demijohn  and  some  jugs. 

The  significant  facts  revealed  by  this  study  are  thus  stated 
by  the  Carnegie  Foundation  : 

I.  For  twenty-five  years  past  there  has  been  an  enormous  over- 
production of  uneducated  and  ill  trained  medical  practitioners.  This  has 
been  in  absolute  disregard  of  the  public  welfare  and  without  any  serious 
thought  of  the  interests  of  the  public.  Taking  the  United  States  as  a 
whole,  physicians  are  four  or  five  times  as  numerous  in  proportion  to 
population  as  in  older  countries  like  Germany. 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  249 

2.  Over-production  of  ill  trained  men  is  due  in  the  main  to  the  ex- 
istence of  a  very  large  number  of  commercial  schools  sustained  in  many 
cases  by  advertising  methods  through  which  a  mass  of  unprepared  youth 
is  drawn  out  of  industrial  occupations  into  the  study  of  medicine. 

3.  The  existence  of  many  of  these  unnecessary  and  inadequate  med- 
ical schools  has  been  defended  by  the  argument  that  a  poor  medical 
school  is  justified  in  the  interest  of  the  poor  boy.  It  is  clear  that  the 
poor  boy  has  no  right  to  go  into  any  profession  for  which  he  is  not  will- 
ing to  obtain  adequate  preparation  ;  but  the  facts  set  forth  in  this  report 
make  it  evident  that  this  argument  is  insincere,  and  that  the  excuse 
which  has  hitherto  been  put  forward  in  the  name  of  the  poor  boy  is  in 
reality  an  argument  in  behalf  of  the  poor  medical  school. 

4.  A  hospital  under  complete  educational  control  is  as  necessary  to 
a  medical  school  as  is  a  laboratory  of  chemistry  or  pathology.  High- 
grade  teaching  within  a  hospital  introduces  a  most  wholesome  and  bene- 
ficial influence  into  its  routine.  Trustees  of  hospitals,  public  and  private, 
should  therefore  go  to  the  limit  of  their  authority  in  opening  hospital  wards 
to  teaching,  provided  only  that  the  universities  secure  sufficient  funds  on 
their  side  to  employ  as  teachers  men  who  are  devoted  to  clinical  science. 

In  view  of  these  facts,  progress  for  the  future  would  seem  to  require 
a  van;  much  smaller  number  of  medical  schools,  better  equipped  and 
better  conducted  than  our  schools  now  as  a  rule  are ;  and  the  needs  of 
the  public  would  equally  require  that  we  have  fewer  physicians  graduated 
each  year,  but  that  these  should  be  better  educated  and  better  trained. 

I .  The  selection  of  a  high-grade  medical  school.  This  all 
means  that  to  secure  standing  among  your  fellow  doctors 
and  to  become  able  to  make  a  success  in  your  practice,  you 
must  attend  a  medical  school  of  the  first  rank.  Such  a 
school  will  demand  high  entrance  requirements.  A  common- 
school  education  once  sufficed.  A  high-school  course  is  now 
the  minimum,  while  the  best  schools  are  requiring  two  }-ears 
of  college  work  for  entrance.  And  it  may  be  that  after  a 
few  years  college  graduation  will  be  necessary  before  medical 
studies  can  be  commenced. 

The  course  itself  has  been  made  more  difficult,  and  re- 
quires four  years  of  hard  work.  And  since  it  calls  for  ex- 
pensive equipment,  the  tuition  is  high.  The  laboratory  work, 
in  addition  to  the  lectures,  so  fully  occupies  the  time  of  a 


250  OCCUPATIONS 

conscientious  student  that  he  cannot  expect  to  earn  much 
toward  paying  his  expenses  by  doing  outside  work.  Send 
for  a  catalogue  of  some  first-rank  medical  school,  and  look 
through  its  entrance  requirements,  its  tuition  fees,  its  course 
of  study,  the  living  expenses  which  must  be  met,  in  addition, 
and  estimate  what  this  medical  education  will  cost  you  in 
time  and  money. 

2.  Graduate  work  required  of  the  specialist.  Bear  in 
mind,  however,  that  this  training  equips  one  only  for  service 
as  a  general  practitioner.  In  order  to  enter  what  is  becom- 
ing an  increasingly  desirable  field,  that  of  specialist,  one 
needs  additional  training  in  his  particular  subject,  be  this 
the  eye,  stomach,  or  the  lungs  ;  and  this  training  calls  for 
post-graduate  work  either  in  some  American  or  foreign  city 
noted  for  medical  study.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  such 
training  is  expenisve. 

3.  Necessity  of  hospital  experience.  But  the  cherished 
degree  (Doctor  of  Medicine)  once  secured,  your  struggles 
are  by  no  means  over.  It  takes  practice  to  make  perfect. 
And  a  very  good  way  to  get  this  is  to  serve  without  pay 
as  interne  in  a  hospital.  "  Every  conscientious  physician 
procures  a  hospital  diploma  before  going  out  into  the  world," 
says  Dr.  Shrady,  former  editor  of  the  Medical  Record; 
"  and  he  learns  more  in  that  last  year  than  he  has  learned 
in  all  his  previous  term  of  study."  But  this  hospital  expe- 
rience completed,  at  last  the  time  comes  for  hanging  out 
the  shingle. 

4.  Location.  Upon  a  wise  choice  of  location  depends 
much  of  the  doctor's  financial  success.  In  a  community 
where  the  people  are  inclined  to  call  little  for  medical 
services,  or  where  several  doctors  are  already  strongly  in- 
trenched, he  may  find  it  hard  indeed  to  meet  expenses. 
And  in  his  home  community  he  is  liable  to  lack  prestige, 
for  people  knew  him  when  he  knew  no  medicine,  and  many 
are  ready  to  doubt  that  he  knows  much  now. 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  251 

Habits  of  work.  Medicine  does  not  stand  still,  but  is  a 
rapidly  changing  science.  "'  Probably  no  one  of  the  profes- 
sions," says  Dr.  Roosa  of  the  New  York  Post  Graduate 
Medical  School,  "  has  made  more  progress  in  the  nineteenth 
century,  and  stands  in  a  more  advanced  position  at  the  open- 
ing of  the  twentieth,  than  that  of  medicine.  The  invention 
of  general  anaesthesia  by  ether  and  afterward  by  chloroform  ; 
of  local  anaesthesia  by  cocaine  ;  the  determination  of  the 
cause  of  suppuration  in  wounds  leading  to  antiseptic  sur- 
gery, with  all  its  possibilities  of  cure  by  surgical  operations  of 
what  was  before  incurable  ;  the  discoveries  in  the  laboratory 
of  the  origin  of  disease,  and  the  toxines  with  which  to  com- 
bat it ;  the  invention  of  various  instruments  to  examine  the 
hidden  parts  of  the  body,  as  well  as  a  new  source  of  light 
by  which  even  the  skeleton  is  plainly  seen,  with  numerous 
other  advances,  open  a  great  field  for  him  who  is  properly 
fitted  to  enter  upon  the  practice  of  medicine  and  surgery." 

This  means  that  the  doctor  must  be  always  a  student.  He 
must  keep  abreast  of  medical  improvements  by  reading  pro- 
fessional periodicals  and  the  latest  textbooks.  He  must  be 
eager  to  learn  of  new  cures  and  new  instruments.  If  his 
practice  is  in  a  country  town,  he  should  take  a  post-graduate 
course  every  few  years,  and  come  to  the  great  city  with  mind 
as  open  as  if  to  learn  anew  his  profession.  Unless  he  does 
these  things  he  will  be  left  years  behind  the  times,  and  his 
patients  will  be  lost  to  some  young  medical  graduate. 

The  successful  practitioner  is  increasingly  busy,  and  must 
not  look  forward  to  long  vacations.  He  will  do  well  to  make 
his  expenses  for  the  first  year  or  two,  and  hence  cannot 
afford  vacations.  Again,  it  is  when  the  older  doctor  is  away 
that  people  may  be  compelled  to  seek  him  out,  and  once 
called  he  may  be  retained  as  the  regular  physician. 

Remuneration.  The  young  man  may  wonder  what  are  to 
be  his  financial  returns  for  such  earnest  efforts.  The  phy- 
sician usually  has  no  stated  salary.   Much  depends,  of  course. 


252  OCCUPATIONS 

upon  his  location  and  professional  ability  ;  something  de- 
pends, too,  upon  his  business  ability  —  high  scientific  attain- 
ments do  not  seem  to  be  often  combined  with  shrewd 
business  sense ;  some  secure  fees  into  the  thousands,  some 
scarcely  any  fees  at  all ;  but  in  general,  their  incomes  enable 
them  to  live  comfortably. 

Most  revolutionary  of  all  are  the  changes  taking  place  in 
our  conceptions  of  medicine.  It  is  said  that  the  Chinese 
pay  their  doctors  when  the  patients  are  well  and  stop  this 
pay  as  soon  as  they  are  sick.  To-day  the  emphasis  is  placed 
everywhere  on  the  prevention  of  disease  rather  than  on  its 
cure.  While  this  may  seem  a  simple  view,  the  germ  theory 
of  disease  indicates  that  in  order  to  prevent  disease,  the  gen- 
eral living  conditions  of  a  community  must  be  improved. 
For  example,  see  how  preventive  medicine  operates  in  attack- 
ing typhoid  fever.  The  older  plan  was  to  attend  to  the  sick 
individual ;  the  present  plan  is  to  attend  to  the  water  supply, 
food  supply,  etc.,  so  that  the  individual  will  not  get  sick. 

The  physician  is  thus  becoming  a  public  servant.  He 
works  not  only  to  get  disease  out  of  the  person,  but  also,  if 
it  be  communicable,  to  drive  it  from  the  community.  No 
one  urges  upon  the  public  the  menace  of  the  town  dump 
or  the  unfiltered  water  supply  more  earnestly  than  he.  This 
knowledge  he  lays  before  the  people  in  addresses,  articles 
in  the  papers,  or  in  conversation  upon  the  streets  and  in 
the  homes.  He  makes  known  his  investigations  to  his 
medical  society  in  an  address  or  writes  an  article  for  the 
medical  journal.  His  reports  to  the  board  of  health  supply 
the  public  with  a  vast  amount  of  free  information.  In  all 
these  ways  the  physician  is  not  simply  a  carrier  of  prescrip- 
tion pad,  drug  case,  and  fee  book,  but  a  storehouse  of 
valuable  information  which  is  being  offered  at  every  turn 
in  the  community  service. 

But  see  what  this  means  when  fees  are  considered.  The 
doctor  is  paid  by  the  sick  person  whom  he  treats,  and  most 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  253 

people  would  be  shocked  to  receive  a  bill  for  medical  serv- 
ices when  they  had  been  well  all  the  year.  Thus  by  pre- 
ventive activity  the  doctor  cuts  off  his  own  income.  Still, 
there  is  no  doubt  that  preventive  medicine  will  keep  on  grow- 
ing in  importance,  and  that  this  view  of  disease  as  something 
which  society  as  a  whole  must  struggle  against  will  increasingly 
mean  that  much  of  the  physician's  services  will  go  unpaid. 

Social  service.  Such  a  conception  of  the  physician's  work 
indicates  that  without  doubt  it  is  a  noble  calling.  "  Every 
physician,"  says  Dr.  Starke,  "is  anxious  to  impart  the  best 
that  he  knows  and  put  everybody  on  the  road  of  right 
living,  prevent  disease,  and  advise  the  sick  regarding  their 
health.  This  he  does,  not  only  because  you  send  for  him, 
nor  because  you  hold  out  a  fee  to  him,  but  because  he  would 
not  have  taken  the  profession  for  a  livelihood  if  he  did  not 
love  the  work  in  spite  of  its  hardships  and  the  study  with- 
out end,  but  for  the  love  of  his  fellow  man  and  the  desire 
to  do  good  and  relieve  human  suffering.  Hippocrates  said, 
'  He  who  loves  his  art  loves  man.'  " 

THE   DENTIST 

Dentistry  is  another  profession  which  is  making  great 
advances,  these  being  perhaps  even  more  rapid  than  in 
medicine. 

Advantages  and  disadvantages.  Its  advantages  over  other 
professional  vocations  are  few,  the  remuneration,  office  hours, 
and  the  class  of  people  with  whom  one  comes  in  contact, 
averaging  about  the  same.  But  dentistry  possesses  at  least 
one  distinctive  advantage,  namely,  contributing  to  the  educa- 
tion of  the  public  in  the  care  of  the  mouth,  the  necessity  of 
proper  mastication,  correct  occlusion  of  the  teeth,  and  the 
right  way  to  care  for  them. 

To  some  of  you  this  may  not  seem  a  large  enough  work 
to   which   to   dedicate  your  life,   but   if   you   will   consider 


254  OCCUPATIONS 

that  more  than  eighty  per  cent  of  the  people  do  not  use  a 
toothbrush,  never  consult  a  dentist  except  for  extractions,  you 
will  appreciate  what  overcoming  the  decay  of  the  teeth  means 
to  the  health  of  the  people.  Also  think  how  an  unclean 
mouth  pollutes  the  air  in  a  crowded  place  and  how  much 
illness  and  suffering  it  may  cause.  In  rendering  dental 
service  one  benefits  mankind  in  a  most  praiseworthy  way. 

Its  disadvantages  lie  mostly  in  the  nervous  strain  to  which 
the  practitioner  is  constantly  subjected,  the  unclean  mouths 
and  bad  breaths  he  frequently  has  before  him,  and,  as  in  all 
professions,  the  years  it  takes  to  build  up  a  paying  prac- 
tice. The  cost  of  fitting  up  a  dental  office  is  also  a  serious 
item  to  the  average  young  graduate. 

Remuneration  and  advancement.  After  graduation  there 
are  two  ways  of  proceeding  :  starting  for  one's  self  or  work- 
ing as  assistant.  In  the  first  case  you  have  for  some  time 
the  problem  of  paying  expenses,  which  is  a  long  struggle 
for  those  who  have  but  little  financial  backing,  and  hard 
enough  for  those  who  have  considerable  money  ahead. 

In  working  as  assistant  you  can  generally  start  at  a  salary 
of  twenty-five  dollars  a  week  and  a  commission  on  all  the 
work  you  do,  and  advance  to  as  large  a  salary  and  commis- 
sion as  you  are  able  to  command,  depending  entirely  on 
your  speed  and  the  quality  of  your  work.  In  working  as 
assistant,  you  are  gaining  much  needed  experience  both  in 
dentistry  and  in  the  management  of  an  office. 

After  one  has  finally  become  established  in  his  own  prac- 
tice, his  earnings  will  depend  on  several  things  :  mainly  the 
quality  of  his  work,  his  personality,  the  appearance  of  the 
office,  and  the  place  where  he  locates.  But  a  good  man 
should  be  able  to  make  two  or  three  thousand  dollars 
a  year  and  from  that  up.  The  National  Dental  Associa- 
tion has  estimated  that  two  thousand  persons  should  sup- 
port one  dentist,  and  since  there  are  only  about  fifteen 
thousand  dentists  in  the  country  to-day,  it  is  clear  that  when 


1 

4 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  255 

the  public  is  educated  to  dentistry  —  which  profession  is 
as  yet  in  its  infancy  —  there  will  be  need  of  at  least  thirty 
thousand  more  practitioners. 

The  average  professional  career  of  a  dentist  is  about  thirty 
years,  but  this  depends  on  the  care  he  gives  himself.  The 
nature  of  his  work  demands  that  he  take  plenty  of  out- 
door exercise,  and  as  he  yields  or  does  not  yield  to  this 
demand  will  his  period  of  usefulness  be  lengthened  or  short- 
ened. It  takes  a  young  dentist  about  five  years  to  get  well 
started  and  then,  if  he  has  shown  himself  to  be  a  good 
man,   his  rise  is  rapid. 

Qualifications  and  training.  The  natural  qualifications  de- 
manded of  a  man  entering  dentistry  are  thoroughness,  neat- 
ness, pleasing  personality  and  appearance,  and  a  mechanical 
turn  of  mind.  Those  to  be  desired  are  a  conscience  (as  the 
chances  for  deceit  and  chicanery  are  many,  since  patients 
are  usually  ignorant  of  what  is  being  done)  and  an  aes- 
thetic sense  to  help  in  reproducing  nature  as  far  as  possible. 

The  usual  dental  course  is  three  years  in  length.  As  in 
the  case  of  medicine,  there  is  at  present  a  strong  move- 
ment to  raise  the  requirement  for  admission  and  the  grade 
of  instruction  offered  in  dental  schools.  Students  interested 
in  this  vocation  should  consult  catalogues  of  leading  schools 
of  dentistry. 

THE    PHARMACIST 

Qualifications  and  training.  It  is  not  so  difficult  to  enter 
pharmacy  as  either  medicine  or  dentistry.  The  require- 
ments differ  somewhat  in  the  various  states,  but  usually  two 
years  of  eight  or  nine  months  study  suffice.  Admission  to 
a  school  of  pharmacy  requires  nothing  beyond  a  four-year 
high-school  course,  less  being  often  sufficient.  Tuition  is 
from  $100  to  $150  per  year.  The  amount  required  for  liv- 
ing expenses  depends  naturally  upon  where  the  school  is 
located  and  upon  the  individual  student. 


2  56  OCCUPATIONS 

A  young  man  who  thinks  of  pharmacy  as  a  career  should 
be  accurate  :  his  work  will  include  the  handling  of  danger- 
ous drugs,  where  a  mistake  may  be  fatal.  He  should  also  be 
of  sterling  character ;  for  he  will  dispense  alcoholic  liquors 
and  narcotics,  and  must  be  able  to  withstand  constant  temp- 
tation. He  should  be  interested  in  the  activities  of  his 
vocation  —  the  mixing  of  drugs,  the  solving  of  problems 
in  chemistry,  the  meeting  of  people,  etc.  As  a  start  before 
taking  up  his  pharmacy  course  he  would  do  well  to  work 
in  some  local  drug  store  for  a  time.  In  New  York  State, 
for  instance,  no  matter  from  what  school  a  man  may  be 
graduated,  he  cannot  be  registered  until  he  has  two  years 
of  practical  experience. 

In  this  way  he  will  be  proceeding  on  definite  ground 
when  he  enters  upon  his  regular  pharmaceutical  course, 
and  his  previous  experience  may  help  him  to  secure  a 
position  in  a  drug  store,  and  thus  to  pay  part  of  his  ex- 
penses while  attending  school.  When,  as  in  some  courses 
of  study,  only  three  days'  attendance  per  week  is  required, 
and  a  term  of  eight  months  leaves  a  long  summer  vacation, 
considerable  spare  time  is  available  for  work  outside. 

Nature  of  the  work ;  remuneration  and  advancement.  The 
young  graduate  in  pharmacy  does  not,  like  the  doctor  or 
dentist,  depend  upon  fees,  but  has  a  regular  salary  and  is 
able  at  once  to  earn  a  living.  Before  securing  his  license 
he  often  receives  from  ^8  to  $12  per  week,  and  after  finish- 
ing his  course  and  passing  the  state  board  examinations,  he 
should  receive  as  high  as  ^18  to  $25  per  week. 

The  school  of  pharmacy  prepares  a  young  man  especially 
for  work  behind  the  prescription  case.  Some  young  men 
prefer  this,  and  secure  positions  where  filling  prescriptions 
is  the  only  work  they  are  required  to  do.  But  there  is  also 
much  to  do  as  a  salesman,  the  returns  from  prescriptions 
in  many  drug  stores  being  only  a  very  small  part  of  the 
trade.    The  young    druggist    therefore   should   develop  his 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  257 

ability  as  a  salesman.  He  should  know  something  about 
the  soda  fountain,  the  candy  trade,  patent  medicines,  cigars, 
and  often  paints  and  oils  and  stock  food.  In  short,  he 
should  become  a  good  business  man. 

A  man  who  thus  pushes  the  drug  business  in  whatever 
departments  are  most  profitable  to  his  proprietor  can  ad- 
vance with  fair  rapidity  until  he  earns  from  $30  to  $35  per 
week.  But  he  will  also  come  to  the  point  where  he  can  do 
better  in  a  store  of  his  own. 

The  hours  are  usually  long,  the  work  confining  and,  to 
some,  unhealthful.  But  the  pharmacist  occupies  a  good 
social  position  in  the  community,  and  has  an  excellent  op- 
portunity to  establish  a  store  of  his  own.  Should  he  desire 
to  become  a  physician  or  a  manufacturing  chemist,  his 
knowledge  of  pharmacy  will  be  of  value. 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  are  the  duties  of  a  school  physician.''  a  school  nurse?  a 
school  dentist? 

2.  What  can  you  tell  of  the  work  of  the  medical  missionary?  the 
sanitary  engineer? 

3.  Who  is  your  local  health  officer  or  commissioner?  What  are 
his  duties? 

4.  Interview  some  local  dentist  concerning  his  vocation,  and  report 
to  the  class. 

5.  Have  you  any  friends  who  are  pharmacists?  If  so,  what  have 
they  to  tell  you  of  their  work  ? 

6.  How  many  hours  on  week  days  is  your  local  drug  store  open? 
How  many  hours  on  Sunday? 

7.  Of  what  importance  is  health  ?  It  is  said  that  medical  science  has 
lengthened  the  average  life  fifteen  years.  Discuss  the  meaning  and 
value  of  this. 


258  OCCUPATIONS 

THE  TEACHER 

Education  an  important  field  of  work.  Education  is  an- 
other field  in  which  considerable  progress  is  being  made.  It 
is  likewise  one  where  clear  thinkers  and  great  leaders  are 
needed.  At  the  tap  of  the  public-school  bell  every  morning 
over  twelve  million  pupils  assemble  to  be  taught.  In  the 
ten  years  ending  19 lo  the  number  of  public  high-school 
pupils  increased  'j^  per  cent.  In  19 10  the  number  of 
teachers  employed  in  these  high  schools  was  41,000,  and 
the  total  number  in  public-school  service  was  over  half  a 
million.  "  Never  have  the  people,"  says  the  United  States 
Commissioner  of  Education,  "  shown  more  clearly  their 
interest  and  faith  in  education  and  in  schools  of  all  kinds 
and  grades." 

Do  you  think  that  it  makes  much  difference  to  us  as  indi- 
viduals and  as  a  nation  what  sort  of  teachers  and  instructors 
we  give  to  our  }'oung  people }  Do  you  know  that,  next  to 
your  parents,  your  teachers  have  done  most  for  you  in  shap- 
ing your  habits  of  thought  and  speech,  your  behavior,  your 
life  ambitions  and  ideals,  in  short,  your  very  lives }  Do 
you  realize  that  our  schools  are  taking  young  foreigners 
from  every  walk  in  life,  and  that  from  this  material,  some 
of  it  very  unpromising,  they  are  making  substantial  Ameri- 
can citizens  ?  Again,  do  you  appreciate  the  fact  that  our 
schools  add  vastly  more  to  our  nation's  prosperity  and  sta- 
bility than  our  army  and  navy  combined  ?  It  may  be  that 
some  of  you  desire  to  have  a  part  in  this  field  of  edu- 
cational service,  and  hence  are  interested  to  learn  about 
teaching  as  a  vocation. 

Wide  range  of  positions  and  salaries.  Since  teaching  posi- 
tions range  all  the  way  from  rural-school  work  at  $30  per 
month  to  city  superintendencies  and  university  presiden- 
cies at  ;r>io,ooo  a  year,  it  is  evident  that  an  equally  wide 
range  of  ])reparati(jn  is  required.     In  general  no  public  fund 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  259 

can  be  paid  teachers  whose  quahfications  have  not  been 
favorably  passed  upon.  This  means  that  usually  an  exam- 
ination is  required  of  the  prospective  teacher  at  the  office 
of  the  county  superintendent  of  schools,  the  city  superin- 
tendent, or  the  state  superintendent,  the  scope  of  the  exam- 
ination depending  upon  the  position  sought,  the  cjualifications 
of  the  applicant,  and  the  laws  of  the  particular  state.  In- 
formation regarding  qualifications  and  approximate  salaries 
in  any  particular  state  can  be  received  from  the  State 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 

Positions  in  rural  and  graded  schools.  To  receive  certifi- 
cates for  teaching  in  ungraded  rural  schools,  there  is  required 
a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  common  branches,  a  high- 
school  education  and,  in  addition,  at  least  a  summer-school 
course  or  a  year  of  normal  training.  To  teach  in  the  grades 
of  city  schools,  as  well  as  in  an  increasingly  large  number 
of  rural  schools,  one  must  have  completed  an  entire  normal- 
school  course  of  two  or  three  years'  length.  Salaries  in  rural 
positions  and  graded  schools  of  village  and  city  range  from 
$30  to  $80  a  month  for  room  teachers  and  from  $50  to 
$150  for  principals  of  buildings.  Of  course,  in  the  larger 
cities  the  salaries  are  considerably  higher. 

High-school  positions.  In  order  to  secure  positions  m 
public  high  schools  or  private  preparatory  schools,  it  is  as 
a  rule  necessary  to  complete  a  four-year  college  course, 
although  in  some  sections  a  normal-school  course  is  ac- 
cepted. As  we  all  know,  the  normal  school  is  a  professional 
training  school  for  teachers,  offering  instruction  in  education 
— -its  history,  theories,  practices,  and  methods  of  teaching. 
Likewise,  in  a  large  number  of  colleges  to-day  there  are 
found  similar  courses  in  education  to  help  equip  students 
for  the  teaching  profession.  The  salaries  of  high-school  men 
vary  considerably.  In  the  small  schools  of  some  sections 
^50  per  month  is  not  uncommon,  while  in  larger  places  and 
especially  in  the  East  and  the  far  West  men  may  receive 


26o  OCCUPATIONS 

from  $75  to  $120  per  month  and  upwards.  If  one  advances 
until  he  becomes  head  of  a  department  in  a  large  high 
school,  he  may  receive  as  high  as  $2500  or  $3000  a  year. 
Special  teachers.  There  are  certain  changes  going  on 
in  public  education  which  are  most  noticeable  in  the  new 
subjects  of  the  later  courses  of  study.  Whatever  subjects  are 
uppermost  in  the  minds  of  the  people  in  general  will  sooner 
or  later  be  taught  in  their  schools.  People  are  to-day  more 
interested  in  commercial,  industrial,  and  agricultural  sub- 
jects than  in  Latin  and  Greek,  hence  there  is  a  greater 
demand  for  teachers  of  the  former  subjects  than  of  the  lat- 
ter. In  teaching,  as  elsewhere,  it  is  wise  to  take  advantage 
of  the  popular  trend  and  to  prepare  yourself  for  the  serv- 
ice most  in  demand.  Among  the  special  lines  of  teaching 
in  vogue  to-day  the  following  are  perhaps  most  worthy  of 
your  attention  : 

1 .  Commercial  teache?'.  Boards  of  education  will  pay  bet- 
ter salaries  to  young  men  teaching  commercial  subjects  than 
to  those  teaching  academic  subjects  because  men  so  quali- 
fied are  more  difficult  to  get,  and  therefore  their  services  at 
present  are  of  more  value.  To  secure  such  a  position  one 
should  complete  the  high-school  course,  get  all  the  practical 
experience  possible  during  vacations,  and  attend  some  high- 
grade  business  school  with  a  normal  department  or  a  school  of 
commerce,  preferably  one  located  in  a  great  commercial  city. 

2.  Supennsors  of  fcnviansliip,  singing,  drawing,  etc. 
Closely  allied  to  the  commercial  teacher  is  the  teacher  and 
supervisor  of  penmanship,  lie  should  have  about  the  same 
educational  training,  but  should  also  be  an  expert  penman, 
able  both  to  teach  penmanship  and  to  supervise  others  teach- 
ing it.  Occupying  similar  positions  in  public  schools  are 
the  teachers  and  supervisors  of  singing,  drawing,  and  physi- 
cal culture.  These  all  teach  their  one  branch,  and  have  had 
special  training  for  their  work  besides  the  education  received 
in  hijj^h  school  and  often  in  normal  school  as  well. 


TIIR  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  261 

3.  Indtistrial  teacher.  There  is  a  widespread  demand  for 
industrial  training.  It  is  pointed  out  that  while  the  usual 
education  fits  students  very  well  for  entrance  to  college, 
preparatory  to  a  professional  course,  still  the  majority  of  our 
students  never  enter  the  professions.  And  it  is  rightly  in- 
sisted that  the  schools  should  train  pupils  for  actual,  not 
imaginary,  careers.  But  when  it  comes  to  preparing  young 
men  for  the  trades,  it  is  found,  for  instance,  that  the  ordi- 
nary teachers  do  not  know  carpentry,  and  the  ordinary  car- 
penters do  not  know  teaching.  Hence  there  is  a  steadily 
growing  demand  for  the  industrial  teacher,  one  who  both 
knows  a  trade  and  can  teach  it. 

4.  Teachers  of  a<^j^icHlture  and  viainial  training.  Closely 
related  to  the  industrial  teacher  are  the  teacher  of  agricul- 
ture, whose  work  was  treated  in  Chapter  IV,  and  the  manual- 
training  teacher,  who  instructs  boys  in  woodworking.  These 
three  special  instructors  require  about  the  same  preparation 
as  the  regular  teacher,  with  the  addition  of  special  training 
in  their  particular  branches. 

5.  Vocational  connsclor.  Schools  in  a  certain  sense  are 
like  factories  turning  out  a  product,  in  this  case  splendid 
young  graduates.  But  factory  products  are  worthless  unless 
people  can  use  them,  and  school  "products"  are  useless 
unless  they  can  do  things.  Is  it  not  clear  then  that  the 
real  test  of  whether  the  high  school  does  good  work  is 
found  in  what  its  graduates  have  proved  their  ability  to  do, 
the  success  they  have  achieved  five,  ten,  or  fifteen  years 
after  leaving  school ,?  This  means  that  the  schools  are 
coming  to  a  new  point  of  view  ;  that  they  recognize  it  as 
their  business  to  be  interested  in  the  practical  means  by 
which  their  graduates  make  good;  in  short,  that  since  it  is 
in  life  work  well  done  that  the  test  really  comes,  the  school 
must  study  the  community  occupations  and  the  individual 
students,  and  seek  to  fit  each  student  into  the  vocation  in 
which  his  work  will  be  most  effective.    This  is  the  work 


262  OCCUPATIONS 

of  the  vocational  counselor,  an  educational  worker  who  is 
as  yet  but  little  known  outside  of  a  few  large  cities. 

The  teacher  who  gives  this  course  can  explain  fully  how 
to  become  a  vocational  counselor.  The  counselor's  main 
activities  are  as  follows  :  He  investigates  the  occupations  of 
the  city,  and  sends  students  out  to  get  vocational  informa- 
tion. On  the  one  hand,  he  learns  what  opportunities  of  life 
work  the  community  has  to  offer,  and,  on  the  other,  he  stud- 
ies boys  and  asks  them  a  series  of  searching  questions.  He 
gives  them  some  matter-of-fact  advice,  some  of  which  may  at 
times  cut  into  their  pride,  but  he  helps  them  to  become  more 
effective  young  men.  Hence  his  work  in  a  community  means 
a  more  purposeful  education  and  a  more  successful  living. 

College  positions,  i.  Education  required.  To  many,  a 
more  desirable  position  than  any  of  the  foregoing  would  be 
one  in  a  college  or  a  university.  In  order  to  secure  such, 
it  is  necessary  to  complete  the  college  course  and,  in  addi- 
tion, from  one  to  three  years  of  graduate  work.  Young  men 
deciding  to  become  college  teachers  should  select  the  particu- 
lar study  or  department  in  which  they  are  most  interested, 
and  then  take  all  the  courses  offered  in  this  during  their 
four  years  at  college,  giving  attention  also  to  closely  allied 
courses.  For  instance,  the  prospective  instructor  in  English 
literature  should  devote  considerable  attention  to  English 
history  rather  than  to  mathematics,  physics,  or  chemistry. 

He  should  then  —  or  better,  after  teaching  his  specialty 
in  high  school  or  academy  for  a  year  or  two  —  study  at 
one  of  the  really  great  universities  where  men  of  interna- 
tional reputation  give  courses  in  his  specialty.  At  the  end 
of  one  year  he  may  secure  the  Master  of  Arts  degree,  and  at 
the  end  of  three  years  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy. 
In  order  to  secure  a  position  in  the  best  colleges  and 
universities,  three  years'  graduate  study  is  usually  required. 

2.  Remuneration.  The  salary  at  which  a  young  man  starts 
as  instructor  may  be  anywhere  from  $500  to  $1200  per  year, 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  263 

with  a  possible  annual  increase  of  $100.  A  man  of  ability 
finds  it  difficult  to  advance  faster  than  the  average,  and  it 
is  a  common  practice  for  such  to  secure  better  positions  in 
other  colleges.  It  usually  requires  a  number  of  years  for  the 
young  instructor  to  work  up  to  be  a  full  professor,  when  his 
salary  would  be  from  $1500  to  $5000,  depending  upon 
whether  he  is  in  some  weak  college  or  a  first-rank  university. 

Supervising  officers.  Some  men  have  the  ability  to  direct 
others,  and  are  especially  fitted  for  executive  work.  There 
are  in  the  field  of  teaching  numerous  positions  for  such  men, 
places  in  which  executive  ability  of  a  high  degree  may  be 
used  to  advantage.  These  include  supervising  a  high  school 
(the  work  of  the  high-school  principal)  ;  the  management 
of  a  city  school  system  (the  work  of  a  city  superintendent)  ; 
the  supervision  of  the  schools  in  a  county  and  a  state  (done 
by  the  county  superintendent  and  the  state  superintendent 
respectively) ;  the  direction  of  a  normal  school,  college,  or 
university  (the  executive  officer  being  called  a  principal, 
president,  or  chancellor). 

These  are  all  positions  of  honorable  service,  and  provide 
much  better  salaries  than  the  usual  teacher's  work.  Nor  is 
the  work  to  one  of  proper  temperament  and  qualifications  a 
greater  strain  than  that  borne  by  the  average  teacher. 

Daily  work  of  the  teacher.  While  it  is  commonly  sup- 
posed that  teaching  is  easy  work,  this  is  a  mistake.  The 
hours  seem  to  be  short  and  the  vacations  long,  but  teachers 
have  often  complained  that  their  work  is  hard,  and  inves- 
tigation has  revealed  that  this  complaint  is  based  on  fact. 
Our  advice  to  those  expecting  to  teach  because  they  are  not 
strong  enough  to  do  anything  else  is.  Don't.  They  should 
secure  a  copy  of  Lewis  M.  Terman's  book  "The  Teacher's 
Health  "  and  discover  the  reason. 

Teaching  as  a  stepping  stone.  For  generations  many 
young  men  have  used  teaching  as  a  stepping  stone.  This 
can  be  done  if  one  is  able  to  secure  a  position  teaching  the 


264  OCCUPATIONS 

proper  subjects  for  the  desired  promotion.  For  instance,  a 
young  man  planning  to  become  an  industrial  chemist  might 
find  a  distinct  advantage  in  teaching  high-school  chemistry. 
Or  if  he  planned  to  become  a  physical  director,  he  might  do 
well  to  direct  high-school  athletics  and  to  teach  physioJog)' 
and  hygiene.  Or  if  he  were  looking  for  a  business  opening, 
work  at  the  head,  of  the  commercial  department  might  prove 
highly  desirable.  Or  should  he  plan  to  be  a  newspaper  man, 
he  could  teach  English  composition  and  rhetoric  and  do 
reporting  after  hours. 

Cautions.  The  caution  must  be  given,  however,  that  in 
using  teaching  as  a  stepping  stone,  one  should  not  lose  sight 
of  the  larger  ambition.  Too  many  have  drifted  into  teaching 
as  a  temporary  occupation  and  have  continued  in  it  for  life. 
If  your  ideal  is  elsewhere,  guard  against  this  danger  and 
move  forward.  Again,  the  young  man  who  goes  into  teach- 
ing simply  for  the  money  he  can  get  out  of  it  will  very 
likely  be  disappointed.  For  teaching,  like  the  work  of  the 
minister,  priest,  or  rabbi,  is  profitable  not  so  much  in  dollars 
and  cents  as  in  the  satisfaction  derived  from  serving  man- 
kind well  and  from  doing  much  civic  and  individual  good 
in  the  world. 

THE  LIBRARIAN 

Natural  qualifications  demanded.  You  may  have  an  idea 
that  library  work  is  only  for  women  and  bookworms.  Yet, 
as  the  New  York  State  Library  School  points  out,  "There 
are  few  lines  of  work  in  which  more  varied  ability  is  desir- 
able. A  high  degree  of  executive  ability  is  demanded  for 
the  administration  of  a  large  library,  with  its  many  different 
lines  of  activity.  Business  judgment  is  necessary  to  make 
a  limited  income  supply  increasing  needs  in  books,  period- 
icals, and  service.  Literary  skill  is  needed  to  determine  what 
reading  matter  should  Ix'  purchased  to  serve  best  the  needs 
of  the  library's  patrons.     Much  technical  skill  is  needed  in 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  265 

cataloguing  and  bibliographic  work.  Intimate  knowledge  of 
books  and  an  equally  intimate  knowledge  of  human  nature 
are  essential  for  reference  work." 

Nature  of  the  service  rendered.  "  By  strengthening  and 
supplementing  the  school  course,  by  promoting  local  indus- 
tries through  furnishing  the  best  technical  literature  relating 
to  these  industries,  as  well  as  in  furnishing  reading  for  cul- 
ture and  recreation,  the  library  may  become  a  civic  center  and 
a  real  social  force.  In  few  other  lines  of  work  is  it  so  essen- 
tial to  be  thoroughly  up-to-date  and  in  touch  with  the  life  of 
the  community,  for  no  one  can  make  books  do  their  full  serv- 
ice who  is  not  in  sympathy  with  the  real  life  they  interpret. 
Scholastic  seclusion  is  no  longer  possible  in  an  efficient  library 
except  in  very  special  lines  of  bibliographic  or  clerical  work." 

Preparation.  This  is  a  sort  of  work  which  calls  for  worthy 
young  men  ;  and  if  you  are  scholarly  and  bookish  in  your 
tastes,  it  will  very  likely  prove  enjoyable.  A  good  way  to  be- 
gin library  work  is  while  in  high  school  to  become  familiar 
with  the  library  equipment  at  hand.  Learn  to  use  the  card 
catalogue  intelligently,  and  become  acquainted  with  the  maga- 
zine indexes,  such  as  the  "  Readers'  Guide  to  Periodical 
Literature."  Make  use  of  such  works  of  reference  as  the 
"  World  Almanac,"  the  "  Statesman's  Year  Book,"  the  Sta- 
tistical Abstract,  and  various  encyclopedias.  It  would  be 
excellent  practice  to  work  up  a  bibliography  covering  the 
material  in  the  library  which  bears  upon  some  assigned  topic. 

It  will  be  possible  to  enter  a  library  school  after  complet- 
ing the  high-school  course,  but  a  college  course  is  of  decided 
advantage,  and  necessary  for  securing  better  positions  later 
on.  You  will  find  wide  reading  essential  and  a  knowledge  of 
several  languages  most  advantageous,  since  the  successful 
librarian  must  be  on  familiar  terms  with  all  great  literature 
of  every  kind.  First-grade  library  schools  are  not  numerous, 
but  if  properly  prepared  you  can  graduate  from  the  best  one 
in  two  years.    Send  for  catalogues  and  investigate  the  courses. 


266  OCCUPATIONS 

Remuneration.  Graduated  from  the  library  school,  you  are 
practically  certain  of  a  position.  The  salary  at  the  start  is 
from  3900  to  $1000  a  year.  The  tenure  of  office  is  usually 
secure  and  the  chances  of  advancement  are  good.  A  young 
man  of  suitable  natural  qualifications  and  professional  educa- 
tion can  reasonably  exjaect  to  receive  a  salary  of  from  $2000 
to  $3000,  and  occupy  a  desirable  position  socially. 

THE  JOURNALIST 

Advantages  and  disadvantages.  I'he  career  of  the  jour- 
nalist offers  several  special  advantages  :  it  keeps  one  in 
touch  with  events  of  the  day  ;  it  affords  the  opportunity  to 
meet  leading  men  and  women  ;  it  permits  considerable  free- 
dom of  movement  and  provides  many  interesting  experi- 
ences ;  it  furnishes  opportunity  for  self-expression,  a  most 
basic  form  of  human  enjoyment;  and  it  allows  one  to  oppose 
evil  and  advocate  good  things  for  the  benefit  of  mankind. 

Ikit  there  are  also  disadvantages  to  be  considered.  None 
but  quick,  accurate  thinkers  can  keep  up  with  the  day's  hap- 
penings. Before  the  dull  thinker  will  have  heard  the  first 
rumor,  his  competitor  will  have  a  full  column  on  the  front 
page.  None  but  men  of  good  manners  and  some  refinement 
can  secure  news  from  leading  men  and  women  ;  certainly 
the  semi-detective  boor  cannot  intcn'iew  the  notable  nor  be 
assigned  to  follow  the  presidential  candidate.  Freedom  of 
movement  and  interesting  experiences  usually  mean  irregu- 
larity of  meals  and  sleep  —  a  strain  which  to  be  withstood 
demands  a  strong  ph)sique.  The  write-up  requires  literary 
ability,  and  when  good  work  has  to  be  done  at  high  speed  this 
ability  needs  to  be  of  a  special  quality.  Opposing  evil  and 
upholding  good  means  making  enemies.  This  to  some  men 
is  a  severe  nervous  stress,  which  when  added  to  the  other 
strains  of  newspaper  work  demands  strong  will  power,  perse- 
verance, and  something  of  the  fighter's  temperament. 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  267 

Starting  points  for  the  beginner.  There  are  various  kinds 
of  work  in  journalism.  Young  men  who  are  fond  of  sports 
may  "develop  into  editors  of  the  sporting  page;  others  are 
bookish,  and  may  write  principally  book  reviews;  still  others 
are  absorbed  in  art,  or  the  drama,  or  music,  or  society,  or  crime 
and  the  courts.  Men  who  can  do  good  work  in  more  than 
one  branch  of  journalism  will  have  little  difficulty  in  securing 
employment,  while  on  the  other  hand  they  will  probably  find 
it  hard  to  advance  to  a  well-paid  position.  In  general,  the 
ranks  are  crowded,  and  it  is  not  unusual  for  even  a  well- 
qualified  young  journalist  to  be  out  of  work  or  at  least  unable 
to  make  adequate  living  expenses. 

It  is  not  hard  to  get  the  opportunity  to  tiy  yourself  out 
in  newspaper  work.  Take  hold  of  the  high-school  paper 
or  annual,  or  write  up  news  items  for  the  local  editor.  He 
may  take  whatever  items  you  are  able  to  hand  in.  A  very 
successful  journalist  of  our  acquaintance  early  in  his  senior 
year  at  college  asked  an  editor  if  he  might  not  do  reporting 
for  him,  and  before  graduation  was  earning  on  this  part-time 
basis  several  dollars  per  week. 

The  best  training.  If  the  work  appears  to  offer  a  career 
in  which  you  can  succeed,  make  definite  preparation  for  it. 
Attend  a  college  which  offers  a  strong  course  in  journalism. 
These  colleges  at  present  are  very  few  in  number,  but  they 
have  already  demonstrated  their  value. 

Talcott  Williams,  Director  of  the  School  of  Journalism, 
Columbia  University,  writes  : 

For  thirty-five  years  journalists  have  watched  the  successive  attempts 
to  provide  courses  in  newspaper  work  and  establish  professional  training 
for  journalism,  in  grave  doubt  whether  the  same  measure  of  preparation 
could  be  provided  for  a  calling  which  is  at  bottom  an  art,  as  is  furnished 
for  callings  like  law  and  medicine,  which  are  at  bottom  professions.  The 
difference  is  clear.  An  art  cannot  be  imparted  without  actual  practice  in 
it.  In  a  profession  the  principles,  knowledge,  and  method  can  be  suc- 
cessfully imparted  and  the  practice  can  come  later.  "  There  is  no  way  of 
learning  to  report,  but  to  report,"  has  been  the  conviction  of  nearly  every 


268  OCCUPATIONS 

journalist  who  has  been  a  reporter  and  remained  a  reporter,  as  every 
journalist  should,  to  the  end  of  his  days. 

Work  in  a  school  cannot  and  does  not  turn  a  man  into  a  journalist. 
A  law  school  does  not  make  a  lawyer.  A  school  of  medicine  does  not 
make  a  physician.  But  every  newspaper  man  who  has  trodden  the  hard 
and  sterile  path  of  the  city  room  in  undergoing  his  training,  can  judge 
for  himself  the  value  of  this  practical  work  in  bringing  a  man  to  the 
newspaper  office,  ready  for  his  tasks,  knowing  how  to  avoid  mistakes 
and  knowing,  too,  how  to  obey  the  orders  of  his  superiors  and  do  the 
assignments  on  which  they  send  him. 

Remuneration.  The  average  '"  cub  "  reporter  gets  a  small 
wage,  usually  from  $8  to  $io  per  week.  He  should  be  well 
satisfied  if  he  receives  $io  to  $20  per  week.  How  high  he 
will  climb  eventually  depends  chiefly  upon  ability  and  some- 
what, of  course,  upon  opportunity.  Walter  H.  Page,  editor 
of  the  Wor/d's  Work,  is  said  to  receive  $35,000  a  year, 
Arthur  Brisbane,  $52,000,  and  it  is  reported  that  Frank 
Munsey  offered  Theodore  Roosevelt  $100,000  a  year  if  he 
would  edit  the  former's  New  York  daily.  It  is  safe  to  say, 
however,  that  a  man  in  the  prime  of  life  who  receives  from 
$2000  to  $2  500  a  year  may  be  ranked  as  a  successful  journalist. 

THE   MINISTER,   PRIEST,   OR  RABBI 

The  life-calling  of  the  religious  leader  is  a  noble  one, 
no  matter  what  particular  religion  or  denomination  is  served. 
Hence,  although  in  public  high  schools  no  particular  faith 
may  be  taught,  it  is  believed  that  not  to  give  some  place  to 
this  calling  in  a  book  of  life  careers  would  be  a  serious  omis- 
sion. So,  while  we  shall  merely  touch  upon  some  of  the 
general  features  of  this  vocation,  we  would  advise  the  boy 
who  is  thinking  seriously  of  entering  this  calling  to  talk  the 
matter  over  with  his  parents,  and  then  get  from  his  pastor 
whatever  additional  information  is  desired. 

Kind  of  service  rendered.  The  religious  leader  is  one  of 
the  great  educational  and  inspirational  forces  in  the  life  of 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  269 

men.  He  has  to  do  with  the  enrichment  of  human  life,  with 
the  purification  of  the  fountains  of  action,  with  the  uprooting 
of  the  evils  which  afflict  mankind,  and  with  lessening  and 
destroying  the  sorrows  of  the  world.  It  takes  men  of  as  good 
caliber  to  make  successful  ministers,  priests,  and  rabbis  as 
it  does  to  make  successful  bankers  or  other  business  men. 
Young  men  of  good  intellect,  clean  heart,  and  some  wealth 
should  ask  themselves  in  all  earnestness  whether  they  are 
not  called  to  devote  their  lives,  their  great  gifts,  and  their 
money  to  the  servdce  of  mankind. 

Education  and  remuneration.  As  is  well  known,  prospec- 
tive religious  leaders  should  obtain  all  the  education  that 
high  school,  college,  and  seminary  can  offer.  Their  pastoral 
work  later  on  will  include  constant  study  of  the  highest 
themes,  close  contact  with  all  classes  of  people,  and  countless 
opportunities  to  help  others  and  to  uplift  society.  Conse- 
quently they  should  be  of  keen  intellect  and  studious, 
morally  sound,  lovers  of  their  kind,  high-minded,  with  their 
ambitions  set  on  spiritual  values  rather  than  on  material  suc- 
cess. While  this  vocation  is  totally  unlike  most  others  in 
compensation,  and  the  young  man  looking  for  the  material 
rewards  of  life  will  hardly  be  tempted  to  join  this  company, 
still,  he  who  possesses  the  sublime  ambition  to  spend  himself 
in  noble  deeds,  with  little  thought  of  self,  will  not  be  without 
an  adequate  reward. 

THE  LAWYER 

After  having  heard  some  eloquent  advocate  make  his 
plea  before  the  jur)',  you  may  have  become  fired  with  the 
ambition  to  be  a  lawyer.  There  is  indeed  a  certain  fascina- 
tion in  the  practice  of  law.  Its  reasoning  is  keen  and  log- 
ical, its  activities  are  in  vital  contact  with  men  of  affairs, 
and  it  furnishes  the  never-failing  study  of  human  nature, 
the  fierce  joy  of  forensic  battle,  and  the  opportunity  to 
participate  in  public  affairs.    The  law,  too,   is  of  personal 


270  OCCUPATIONS 

service  to  a  man,  since  he  learns  what  his  rights  are  and 
how  to  defend  them.  It  is  also  of  commercial  value,  a 
splendid  adjunct  to  the  real-estate  dealer,  collector,  banker, 
or  manufacturer. 

An  overcrowded  profession.  But  the  law  is  a  ver\'  much 
overcrowded  profession.  In  Chicago  about  looo  lawyers 
have  a  fair  practice,  while  some  4000  others  are  trying  all 
sorts  of  plans  to  make  a  living.  In  New  York  City  alone 
there  are  more  lawyers  than  in  the  whole  of  Germany  or 
of  France.  But  in  Chicago,  New  York,  and  other  Amer- 
ican cities  only  a  small  proportion  of  these  men  are  really 
lawyers  in  practice ;  most  of  them  eke  out  a  living  in  sell- 
ing insurance,  dealing  in  real  estate,  reporting  for  papers, 
doing  hack  work  for  busy  lawyers,  or  watching  with  hungry 
eyes  for  political  jobs.  Such  activities  do  not  constitute  a 
desirable  life  career.  And  since  so  many  young  lawyers  are 
forced  to  do  these  things,  you  should  think  seriously  before 
entering  law. 

Personal  qualifications  demanded.  Ik^fore  you  choose  a 
vocation  in  which  thousands  of  young  men  are  not  suc- 
ceeding, you  should  ask  yourself,  Am  I  especially  well 
equipped  to  push  past  these  men  and  make  good  in  law  ? 
This  means,  for  one  thing,  are  you  strong-willed,  able  to 
resist  temptations,  and  keep  your  record  honest .''  No  trick- 
sters can  make  a  success  in  law,  which  has  its  temptations 
that  no  weakling  of  a  man  is  able  to  withstand  and  keep 
honest.  It  means,  too,  are  you  aggressive  ?  For  in  law 
there  is  something  of  the  fight,  of  the  rough-and-tumble  in 
which  a  man  must  keep  cool,  set  his  jaw,  smile  calmly,  and 
deliver  body  blows. 

With  this  aggressiveness  is  needed  keenness,  a  knowledge 
of  when  to  strike.  And  to  keenness  should  be  added  studi- 
ousness,  the  analytic  mind,  and  the  student  zeal  which,  be- 
cause thev  bring  their  possessor  to  the  courtroom  thoroughly 
prepared,  win  the  case  before  the  first  juror  is  drawn.    Add 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  271 

to  these  an  intense  devotion  to  the  law,  the  high  resolve 
that  in  it  he  shall  live  and  for  it  he  would  die,  and  it 
may  be  claimed  that  the  young  man  is  well  equipped  to 
prepare  for  law. 

Training  and  getting  started.  '\o  prepare  for  law  —  not  to 
enter  law,  for  this  is  years  ahead  —  a  high-school  education 
is  required  as  a  preliminary,  and  should  be  followed  by  a 
college  course.  The  lawyer  must  be  a  well-informed  man 
in  general,  for  in  a  lawsuit  there  is  no  estimating  what  he 
may  be  called  upon  to  know.  "The  law  reaches  in  every 
direction,"  says  the  late  Justice  Brewer,  "touching  every 
branch  of  knowledge  and  life.  Every  increase  in  civilization, 
making  as  it  does  the  social  and  business  life  more  complex, 
increases  the  demands  for  a  larger  storehouse  of  knowledge 
on  the  part  of  the  lawyer." 

As  a  result  of  this  growing  complexity  of  legal  practice, 
lawyers  are  specializing  quite  the  same  as  engineers,  teach- 
ers, or  physicians.  Some  devote  themselves  exclusively  to 
criminal  cases,  others  to  civil  cases,  and  still  others  to  the 
law  of  corporations,  trademarks,  patents,  or  property  titles. 

Most  of  the  famous  lawyers  of  the  past  studied  law  in  the 
offices  of  established  attorneys,  but  it  is  recognized  that  the 
proper  training  for  the  legal  profession  to-day  is  gained  by 
attending,  after  graduation  from  college,  a  law  school  whose 
course  is  usually  three  years  in  length.  Upon  completing 
this  course  the  young  man  takes  the  state  bar  examination, 
and  if  successful  he  is  admitted  to  practice  in  that  state. 

The  young  lawyer  is  then  ready  to  open  an  office  or  to 
become  an  assistant  in  some  well-established  law  firm.  This 
latter  plan,  if  it  can  be  arranged,  is  perhaps  to  be  recom- 
mended. In  either  case,  it  is  not  uncommon  for  young 
lav^ers  to  wait  two,  three,  five,  or  even  more  years  before 
they  earn  expenses. 


2/2  OCCUPATIONS 

EXERCISES 

1.  Have  any  of  your  friends  or  relatives  become  teachers  ?  librarians  ? 
journalists?  ministers?  lawyers?    What  can  you  tell  of  their  careers? 

2.  Interview  some  man  in  each  of  the  above  professions  and  report 
to  the  class  what  you  have  learned  concerning  his  life  work. 

3.  Secure  a  catalogue  of  some  first-grade  school  preparing  students 
for  a  profession  which  interests  you,  and  tell  the  class  something  of  what 
the  course  is  like. 


FOR  THOSE  WHO  THINK  OF  BECOMING 
PROFESSIONAL  MEN 

Overcrowding  in  the  learned  professions.  The  learned 
professions,  it  would  seem,  in  general  are  overcrowded. 
Men  often  spend  long  years  in  preparation  and  in  the  end 
lead  mediocre  lives  when  the  same  effort  would  have  brought 
them  success  in  some  other  occupation.  What  causes  this 
overcrowding  ?  One  reason,  no  doubt,  is  the  prevailing  sys- 
tem of  education  which  fits  students  for  the  professions  rather 
than  for  anything  else.  The  young  man  at  the  end  of  his  high- 
school  course  and  of  his  college  course,  too,  often  seems  rather 
out  of  touch  with  practical  affairs  and,  feeling  himself  above 
the  work  offered  him  but  keen  as  a  student,  drifts  into  law, 
medicine,  or  the  ministry,  or  takes  up  teaching  as  a  makeshift. 

This  statement  is  in  no  way  intended  as  a  criticism  of 
those  young  men  who  early  decide  on  a  certain  profession 
and  resolutely  push  toward  it  year  after  year.  Such  earnest 
persons  are  an  inspiration,  and  for  them  it  is  true  that  there 
is  always  room  at  the  top.  But  many  young  men  drift  on 
in  their  studies  year  by  year  because  it  would  take  energy  to 
stop.  rVjr  these,  "  room  at  the  top  "  is  a  dream  ;  their  days 
will  l)c-  spent  among  the  many  at  the  bottom. 

Qualifications  for  entering  the  learned  professions.  If  you 
are  especially  well  fitted  for  a  profession  and  able  to  make 
the  preparation  necessary,  and  if  your  heart  yearns  for  this 


THE  LEARNED  PROFESSIONS  273 

profession  and  this  only,  go  into  it  by  all  means.  Push  for- 
ward and  keep  on  pushing,  for  you  are  reasonably  sure  to 
win.  But  do  not  let  some  good  examination  marks  or  quick- 
ness in  learning  lessons  inveigle  you  into  a  profession  never 
meant  for  you  ;  and  do  not  imagine  that  winning  the  high- 
school  debate  proves  your  fitness  for  a  lawyer's  career.  Such 
qualities  may  also  fit  one  for  a  book  agent.  But  in  any  case, 
whether  it  be  medicine,  farming,  or  blacksmithing,  take  a 
positive  attitude  toward  it.  Do  not  drift,  or  you  may  be 
caught  in  some  undesirable  eddy.  Choose  the  vocation  in 
which  you  believe  your  greatest  success  will  be  found,  and 
then  pursue  the  education  which  best  prepares  you  for  that 
career. 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books  ^ 

Bardeen,  C.  W.  Teaching  as  a  Business.  C.  W.  Bardeen,  Syracuse. 
N.Y.,  1897.    50  cents. 

Bleyer,  W.  G.  Newspaper  Writing  and  Editing.  Houghton  Mifflin 
Company,  Boston,  191 3. 

BosTWiCK,  A.  L.  The  American  Public  Library.  D.  Appleton  and 
Company,  New  York,  1910.    $1.50. 

Campbell,  John.  Livesof  the  Chancellors.  Thompson  Company.  $5.00. 

Campbell,  John.  Lives  of  the  Chief  Justices.  Thompson  Company. 
$5.00. 

Given,  J.  L.  The  Making  of  a  Newspaper.  Henry  Holt  and  Company, 
New  York.    $1.50. 

Harrington,  H.  F.,  and  Frankenberg,  T.  T.  Essentials  of  Jour- 
nalism.   Ginn  and  Company,  Boston,  191  2.    $1.75. 

Earned,  J.  N.  Books,  Culture,  and  Character.  Houghton  Mifflin  Com- 
pany, Boston,  1906.    $1.00. 

Lincoln,  Lillian  J.  Everyday  Pedagogy.  Ginn  and  Company, 
Boston,  1915.    $1.00. 

Olin,  Charles  H.  Journalism.  Penn  Publishing  Company.  Philadel- 
phia, 1 910.    50  cents. 

Perry,  Jr.,  Arthur  CJ:  The  Management  of  a  City  School.  The 
Macmillan  Company ,\^New  York,  1908.    $1.25. 

1  For  books  on  commercial  law,  sec  p.  96. 


274  OCCUPATIONS 

Ralph,  Julian.  The  Making  of  a  Journalist.  Harper  and  Brothers, 
New  York,  1903.    ;?i.25. 

Slosson,  E.  E.  Great  American  Universities.  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, New  York,  1910.    $2.50. 

Terman,  Lewis  M.  The  Teacher's  Health.  Houghton  Mifflin  Com- 
pany, Boston,  191 3.    60  cents. 

Pamphlets 

Addresses  and  Proceedings  of  the  National  Education  Association. 
Annual. 

Librarianship  as  a  Profession.  New  York  State  Library  School,  Albany, 
1 9 1  I .    Free. 

Medical  Education  in  the  United  States  and  Canada.  Carnegie  Founda- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Teaching,  New  York,  1910. 

Report  of  the  Commissioners  of  Education.   Annual.  Washington,  D.C. 

Training  for  Librarianship.  American  Library  Association  Publishing 
Board,  Chicago.    10  cents. 

Periodicals 

Educational  Review.    Monthly.    Educational  Review  Publishing  Com- 
pany, New  York.    #3.00  per  year. 
Jour)ial  of  Education.    Weekly.    Boston.    .^2.50  per  year. 

Popular  Ediicato)-.  Monthly.  Educational  Publishing  Company, 
Boston.     $1.50  per  year. 

Public  Libraries.  Library  Bureau.  1 56  Wabash  >\venue,  Chicago. 
$1.00. 

The  American  Journal  of  PJiannacy.  Monthly.  Philadelphia.  $3.00 
per  annum. 

The  Dental  Register.  Monthly.  Samuel  A.  Crocker  Company,  Cincin- 
nati. Ohio.    $1.00  per  year. 

The  Editor  and  Publisher  and  Journalist.  Weekly.  Editor  and 
Publisher  Company,  New  York.    S2.00  per  year. 

The  Library  Journal.  R.  R.  Bowker  Company,  298  Broadway,  New 
York.    $4.00. 

The  School  Review.  Monthly.  The  University  of  Chicago  Press, 
Chicago.    $1.50  per  year. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS 

The  great  things  have  not  all  been  done ;  scarcely  have  they  been 
commenced.  If  you  have  greatness  in  you,  do  not  be  discouraged.  It 
is  up  to  you.  —  A.  J.  Beveridge 

Old  men  often  marvel  at  how  different  things  are  now 
from  what  they  used  to  be.  Your  fathers  can  point  out  many 
changes  since  they  were  boys.  This  world  is,  in  truth,  chang- 
ing all  the  time,  and  you  yourselves  are  in  the  midst  of  it. 

But  to  young  men  interested  in  life-careers  these  changes 
have  an  added  meaning,  and  are  to  be  taken  advantage  of. 
If  you  were  on  a  gridiron  and  saw  your  opponent  with  the 
ball  under  his  arm  making  a  quick  swerve  toward  the  other 
side  of  the  field,  would  you  not  rush  to  station  yourself  where 
you  could  lay  hold  of  him  ?  Do  the  same  with  your  life  career. 
If  a  splendid  new  line  of  work  with  good  positions  comes  in 
sight,  keep  your  eye  on  it  and  make  a  "  fierce  tackle."  This 
may  save  you  the  disappointment  of  saying  "  I  wish  I  had 
only  thought  about  that,"  and  it  may  mean  to  you  a  good 
start  on  the  road  to  success  before  others  have  realized  that 
there  is  even  an  opening. 

A  number  of  miscellaneous  and  new  openings  will  be  pre- 
sented rather  briefly  in  this  chapter,  the  last  in  which  specific 
vocations  are  treated.  Most  of  these  occupations  may  inter- 
est you  only  as  a  matter  of  general  information  ;  but  there 
may  be  one  which  will  stir  the  life-career  motive  in  you. 
If  so,  use  the  exercises,  readings,  and  references  to  find 
out  much  more  about  this  life  calling  than  we  have  space 
to  present. 

275 


2/6  OCCUPATIONS 

THE  PHYSICAL  DIRECTOR 

The  world's  work  demands  energy,  aggressiveness,  and 
persistence.  To  win  to-day  requires  red  blood,  a  sound  body, 
and  a  sound  mind.  What  is  needed  is  not  a  few  highly 
trained  acrobats  or  athletes  but  many  men  with  an  all-round 
development.  In  other  words,  physical  education  for  most 
men  should  not  be  made  an  end  in  itself,  but  only  a  means 
toward  wholesome  habits,  bodily  vigor,  sound  judgment, 
keen  mind,  efficiency  in  daily  work.  And  it  is  because  of 
this,  and  not  the  competitive  element,  that  physical  education 
rests  upon  a  sound  basis. 

The  work  of  the  physical  director.  The  really  valuable 
service  rendered  by  the  physical  director,  consequently,  is  in 
such  work  as  (i)  giving  physical  examinations  at  the  begin- 
ning of  a  course  and  mapping  out  appropriate  exercises  ; 
(2)  repeating  these  examinations  from  time  to  time  and 
seeking  to  make  the  work  most  helpful  to  each  member 
of  the  class  ;  (3)  conducting  classes  on  the  gymnasium  floor, 
planning  games  in  which  all  take  part,  teaching  swimming, 
etc. ;  (4)  counseling  those  who  need  advice  on  problems  of 
purity  and  moral  strength.  One  of  the  greatest  forces  we  have 
ever  known  for  the  uplifting  of  young  men  was  the  physical  di- 
rector of  a  high  school  in  a  town  of  30,000  population.  Keen 
critic,  kindly  "  father,"  he  went  about  doing  untold  good. 

Another  phase  of  the  physical  director's  work  is  supervis- 
ing playgrounds.  The  truth  is  being  impressed  upon  people 
that  children  must  be  taught  how  to  play,  since  in  this  there 
are  great  educative  possibilities.  All  of  our  large  cities  now 
have  organized  playgrounds,  and  the  time  is  not  far  distant 
when  these  will  be  found  in  every  city  or  village  of  5000  or 
more  population.  This  will  mean  an  increasing  demand  for 
playground  directors.  It  will  also  mean  that  many  who  serve 
as  high-school  directors  during  the  school  year  will  have  the 
opportunity  to  take  charge  of  playgrounds  during  the  summer. 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        2T] 

Personal  qualifications.  In  order  to  make  a  success  of 
this  work  a  young  man  should  have,  first,  a  healthy,  alert, 
vigorous  body.  Physical  imperfections  are  a  decided  hin- 
drance ;  a  good  physique  with  abounding  vitality  augurs  suc- 
cess. His  morals  should  not  be  merely  negative,  innocent 
of  wrong,  but  positive,  a  tower  of  strength.  The  slightest 
taint  of  questionable  habit  will  cripple  his  efficiency.  He 
should  be  interested  in  men  rather  than  things.  If  you  en- 
joy solitude,  are  inclined  to  be  gloomy,  prefer  to  study  from 
books,  and  feel  uncomfortable  in  a  crowd,  do  not  go  into  this 
profession,  since  your  success  cannot  be  what  you  would 
have  it ;  but  if  you  like  to  work  with  other  people,  and 
enjoy  the  swing  of  the  crowd  with  yourself  as  the  guiding 
force,  and  if  your  nature  is  social  and  your  temperament 
optimistic,  with  the  right  preparation  you  may  be  a  success 
in  this  career. 

Training  required.  The  training  for  work  in  physical 
education  should  consist  first  of  a  high-school  course,  during 
which  you  should  take  whatever  work  is  given  in  your  gym- 
nasium and  should  play  on  all  the  teams  possible.  A  general 
course  in  a  college  where  there  is  a  strong  department  of 
physical  education  is  an  advantage.  There,  as  in  high  school, 
take  part  in  athletics  and  learn  to  play  all  the  games  you  can. 
Enroll,  by  all  means,  in  the  various  courses  offered  by  the 
physical-education  department.  It  may  be,  as  in  a  number 
of  colleges,  that  these  courses  will  be  all  that  are  needed 
to  fit  you  for  the  work. 

In  most  cases,  however,  the  best  preparation  is  not  se- 
cured in  college,  but  in  a  special  training  school.  Write  to 
some  of  them  for  catalogues,  and  look  through  the  courses 
of  study  to  get  an  idea  of  what  studies  are  taught.  Notice 
the  expenses  and  time  required  to  complete  the  course  and 
also  what  positions  are  held  by  their  graduates. 

To  reach  the  highest  positions  and  salaries  a  medical 
education    is    of    distinct   advantage.     The    doctor   can    do 


278  OCCUPATIONS 

much  more  as  the  head  of  a  physical-education  department 
than  can  the  usual  director,  and  his  services  are  valued 
accordingly. 

Remuneration.  Salaries  vary  widely,  according  to  the 
position  and  qualifications  of  the  director.  College  gradu- 
ates of  little  special  preparation  often  teach  some  subjects 
in  the  high  school  in  addition  to  managing  the  athletics, 
securing  salaries  of  from  $60  to  $150  per  month.  Where 
more  emphasis  is  placed  upon  physical  education,  as  in 
high  schools  having  a  gymnasium,  Y.M.C.A.'s,  etc.,  a  man 
of  better  preparation  is  required,  his  salary  ranging  from 
$800  to  $2500  a  year.  In  college  work  the  man  who  has 
charge  of  this  department  is  often  advanced  to  the  rank 
and  salary  of  a  full  professor,  in  which  case  he  may  receive 
in  some  institutions  as  high  as  $3000  a  year. 

THE  OSTEOPATH 

Nature  of  osteopathy.  While  commonly  confused  with 
massage,  osteopathy  is  very  different.  Massage  is  scientific 
rubbing,  and  always  as  an  adjunct  to  the  work  of  a  medical 
practitioner,  while  osteopathy  is  not  rubbing,  but  stretching 
the  muscles  and  readjusting  minute  displacements  of  the 
bones,  and  this  as  a  complete  and  independent  method  of 
treating  disease. 

The  theory  of  osteopathy  in  general  is  that  since  the 
body  is  a  perfect  machine,  it  is  never  out  of  order  or  dis- 
eased unless  the  circulation  of  the  blood  or  of  the  nerve 
energy  is  somewhere  interfered  with.  This  interference,  it 
is  held,  usually  results  from  too  great  a  pressure  of  bones 
and  muscles  on  blood  vessels  or  nerve  centers.  So  instead 
of  using  drugs  these  practitioners  use  the  bones  of  the  body 
as  levers  for  stretching  muscles  and  readjusting  other  bones, 
hence  the  name  "osteopathy,"  which  means  treating  disease 
by  use  of  the  bones. 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        279 

Training  and  remuneration.  As  a  rule,  osteopathic  phy- 
sicians do  not  treat  infectious  or  contagious  diseases.  Their 
work  is  largely  office  practice,  and  hence  their  hours  are 
more  regular  than  those  of  the  medical  doctor.  Owing  quite 
largely  perhaps  to  the  under-supply  of  osteopaths  thus  far, 
their  remuneration  from  the  beginning  of  their  practice  is 
as  a  rule  fairly  certain,  and  throughout  their  professional 
career  a  large  proportion  of  them  succeed  financially.  I^racti- 
cally  the  same  natural  qualifications  and  the  same  kind  and 
amount  of  preparation  are  required  for  success  here  as  in 
medicine. 

THE  SOCIAL  WORKER 

Men  are  interested  in  their  fellows.  They  are  coming  to 
see  that  since  we  are  all  members  of  one  body,  if  poverty 
and  vice  are  unchecked  it  makes  a  difference  to  them  per- 
sonally. It  has  been  found,  too,  that  the  old  theories  of  "  let 
alone  "  and  '"  do  nothing  "  are  fundamentally  false,  and  that 
"'  the  world  only  grows  better  because,"  as  John  Morley  puts 
it,  "  people  wish  that  it  should,  and  take  the  right  steps  to 
make  it  better."  Now  it  is  because  this  large  amount  of 
work  should  be  done  in  the  proper  way  that  there  arises  the 
need  for  trained  social  workers.  An  extremely  varied  field 
of  activity  is  here  presented,  too  varied  for  anything  more 
than  a  brief  indication  of  what  it  is  like. 

Organized  charity.  An  old,  old  form  of  social  work  is 
charity.  This,  under  approved  methods,  is  managed  by 
one  central  body,  with  some  such  title  as  "  The  Charity 
Organization  Society."  Here  the  attempt  is  made  to  pro- 
vide sufficient  aid  to  place  a  person  or  a  family  on  a  self- 
supporting  basis,  and  also  to  prevent  them  from  securing 
aid  from  several  sources.  In  case  a  town  or  county  renders 
such  assistance,  a  farm  is  often  maintained  on  which  are 
kept  those  unable  to  support  themselves.  The  state  as 
well  as  the  town  also  does  considerable  charity  work.    And 


28o  OCCUPATIONS 

in  times  of  special  need,  as  during  floods  or  other  disasters, 
the  federal  government  extends  aid.  All  this  work  must 
be  organized,  supervised,  and  the  results  checked  up. 

The  care  of  defectives  and  delinquents.  The  care  of 
defectives  is  another  long-standing  form  of  social  work. 
The  blind,  the  crippled,  the  feeble-minded,  the  insane,  can- 
not breast  the  world  as  normal  individuals  do,  and  for 
humane  reasons  must  be  sheltered.  This  is  usually  done  in 
institutions,  some  being  under  state  control,  others  receiving 
funds  from  county,  city,  or  private  sources. 

There  is  also  a  delinquent  class  to  care  for.  Boys  and 
girls  may  be  wayward  and  need  the  discipline  of  reforma- 
tories, usually  termed  "  industrial  schools."  Or  their  needs 
may  be  met  by  juvenile  courts  and  probation  officers.  Adults 
may  show  themselves  unfit  for  social  life  ;  and,  as  a  result, 
there  must  be  jails,  work  yards,  reformatories,  and  prisons. 

The  prevention  of  social  misfits.  While  this  work  is  all 
of  importance  and  must  be  done,  scientific  social  workers 
are  no  longer  content  to  take  the  vast  throng  of  social  mis- 
fits, the  dependents,  defectives,  and  delinquents,  and  merely 
care  for  them.  Such  a  task  they  have  come  to  see  gives 
no  satisfactory  results  ;  new  calls  arise  faster  than  old  ones 
are  attended  to.  So  the  emphasis  is  coming  to  be  placed  on 
prevention  rather  than  cure.  The  dominant  note  of  the 
modern  social  worker  is  to  reach  out  and  save  from  distress, 
to  crush  the  forces  of  evil  which  drive  their  victims  by 
thousands  into  almshouse,  jail,  and  prison.  This  gives  a 
new  point  of  view  and  a  new  field  of  work. 

It  means,  for  one  thing,  instead  of  doling  alms,  giving 
work.  This  requires  a  study  of  unemployment,  industrial 
conditions,  and  employment  bureaus.  But  many  are  too 
young  to  work,  or  have  labored  under  conditions  which 
have  destroyed  their  abilit}^  to  produce,  or  perhaps  they 
never  were  qualified  to  do  anything  well.  Here  is  a  situa- 
tion which  requires  a  wide  sweep  of  remedial  and  pre\'entive 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        281 

action.  There  have  been  developed  new  measures  in  public 
health,  conditions  of  labor,  housing,  drinking,  education, 
recreation,  and  religion,  new  movements  which  will  make 
better  conditions  and  better  men  and,  by  the  interaction  of 
these,  a  better  social  order  for  all  people. 

Demand  for  various  kinds  of  expert  social  workers.  This 
means  that  experts  in  modern  social  work  find  employment 
in  a  number  of  different  lines.  There  are  such  positions 
as  investigator,  a  man  who  can  see  clearly  and  can  get  the 
facts  ;  wiiter,  one  who  can  mold  public  sentiment  by  means 
of  newspaper  or  magazine  articles ;  lecturer,  a  speaker  who 
carries  on  the  reform  movement  through  addresses ;  legisla- 
tive worker,  the  man  who  realizes  that  the  strong  arm  of 
the  law  should  back  a  good  measure,  and  who,  by  lobbying 
and  bill  drafting,  helps  to  get  the  needed  measure  on  the 
statute  book  ;  collector,  one  engaged  in  raising  funds,  often 
by  house-to-house  canvass ;  visitor,  who  may  be  a  trained 
nurse,  a  probation  officer,  or  an  unpaid  friendly  visitor ; 
office  help,  some  one  to  attend  to  correspondence,  filing  sys- 
tems, tabulations,  etc.,  as  is  common  in  usual  office  prac- 
tice ;  and  executive  secrctajy,  the  best  position  perhaps  of 
all,  his  duties  being  numerous  and,  as  indicated  by  his  title, 
executive  in  nature.  In  addition  to  the  social  activities 
directed  by  various  governmental  agencies,  private  benevo- 
lence assumes  responsibility  for  a  greater  part  of  this  social- 
welfare  service.  Good  openings  are  also  to  be  found  by 
trained  men  in  the  welfare  work  now  being  undertaken 
by  a  number  of  large  commercial  and  industrial  companies. 

Remuneration.  The  salaries  paid  social  workers  are  not 
large  as  a  usual  thing.  Their  services,  however  valuable 
in  reality,  are  of  a  sort  from  which  little  money  seems 
to  be  produced.  Since  people  pay  best  for  services  from 
which  they  can  make  money,  it  is  not  a  vocation  recom- 
mended for  those  interested  mainly  in  remuneration.  From 
^50  to  $60  per  month  is  the  usual  salary  for  well-prepared 


282  OCCUPATIONS 

beginners,  and  if  successful  $1200  to  $1800  may  be  ex- 
pected after  a  few  years,  while  the  leading  executive  secre- 
taries receive  much  more  than  this. 

Preparation.  In  preparing  for  social  work  one  should  com- 
plete a  high-school  course,  and  a  college  course  which  affords 
some  strong  courses  in  sociology.  Students  should  also 
elect  work  in  economics,  municipal  government,  and  such 
instruction  in  public  hygiene  or  sanitation  as  may  be  given  by 
the  department  of  biology.  Many  men  are  holding  good  po- 
sitions in  social  work  who  have  had  only  such  general  train- 
ing. College  graduates  without  this  training  may  find  it  to 
their  distinct  advantage  to  take  the  course  mentioned  below. 

There  have  been  established  several  schools  for  social 
workers,  the  one  at  New  York  being  the  best  known.  It  is 
not  necessary  to  be  a  college  graduate  in  order  to  enter 
these  schools,  although  some  college  work  is  desirable.  Write 
for  catalogues,  and  look  the  courses  through  and  estimate 
the  expenses.  You  should  have  no  difficulty  in  securing 
a  position  after  completing  such  a  course.  In  case  of  a 
two-year  course,  plan  to  devote  all  your  time  to  the  scliool 
for  the  first  year,  and  during  the  close  of  this  initial  year 
keep  on  the  lookout  for  a  vacation  position.  It  may  happen 
that  during  the  second  year  )ou  can  hold  some  position 
while  carrying  on  the  course.  (Graduation  finds  such  a 
young   man   prepared   and   easily   placed. 

THE  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION   SECRETARY 

The  International  Y.M.C.A.  College  says  :  The  secretary  as  a  social 
minister  to  the  men  of  our  times  must  know  the  needs  of  the  modern 
city,  its  religious,  social,  and  civic  opportunities  for  service.  He  should 
be  a  student  of  conditions  and  understand  how  to  get  at  the  sources  of 
evil  as  well  as  how  to  deal  with  individuals.  Religion  must  throw  off 
the  guise  of  authority  and  seek  to  minister  directly  to  the  needs  of 
the  individual  man.  An  Association  officer  must  learn  how  to  pre- 
sent the  new  message  that  is  in  harmony  with  modern  science  and 
the  results  of  Biblical  scholarship. 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        283 

A  religious  educator  and  social  servant.  I'reeminently  an  Asso- 
ciation officer,  whether  he  is  a  general  secretary,  a  boys'  secretary,  or 
physical  director,  is  a  religious  educator,  and  he  should  understand  the 
problems  of  education.  An  adequate  conception  of  personal  work  or 
personal  service  means  an  ability  to  help  a  young  man  wherever  he 
may  be  in  need.  The  physical  director  in  the  examining  room,  the 
educational  director  in  interviewing  a  student,  the  employment  secre- 
tary in  the  presence  of  an  applicant,  are  just  as  much  engaged  in 
personal  work  as  the  leader  who  talks  with  the  young  man  after  an 
evangelistic  meeting. 

The  Association  officer  must  also  know  the  community  in  which  he 
lives.  An  unrelated  work  is  sure  to  be  feeble.  The  Association  is  a 
civic  enterprise  to  which  has  been  intrusted  large  property  interests 
and  financial  support.  The  community  has  a  right  to  expect  an  ade- 
quate service  in  return.  Duplication  of  effort  and  competition  with 
existing  agencies  will  not  long  be  tolerated.  An  Association  officer 
must  know  how  to  make  a  survey  of  the  community  which  he  serves 
and  to  become  a  dynamic  factor  in  its  life. 

Organizing  and  executive  work.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  in  social 
service,  religious  education,  and  in  a  knowledge  of  modern  life  and 
thought  the  secretary  for  the  present  day  must  be  equipped  as  never 
before  if  he  is  to  be  of  use  in  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion. An  Association  officer  is  not  only  a  religious  leader,  he  must 
also  be  an  executive.  The  special  characteristic  which  differentiates 
the  secretaryship  from  the  ministry  and  many  other  lines  of  Christian 
work  is  the  quality  of  being  able  to  bring  things  to  pass.  Just  as  the 
minister  is  preeminendy  a  preacher,  as  a  professor  is  preeminently  a 
teacher,  so  the  Association  officer  is  preeminently  an  administrator 
and  an  executive. 

Business  ability  is  necessary  in  all  departments  of  Association  service. 
An  Association  secretary  should  be  trained  in  modern  business  methods. 
Efficiency  is  the  watchword  in  administration  to-day.  Cost  accounting 
and  a  careful  estimation  and  testing  of  every  department  is  demanded 
by  boards  of  directors  and  committees.  An  Association  officer  must 
know  how  to  conduct  an  office  and  organize  it  systematically.  He  must 
know  how  to  manage  an  organization,  how  to  report  existing  conditions 
in  an  intelligent  and  forceful  manner,  how  to  enlist  committee  service 
and  lead  boards  of  directors  and  also  his  associates  on  the  employed 
force  in  the  particular  specialty  which  he  represents.  He  also  has  an 
important  relation  to  the  public,  and  must  understand  the  problems  of 
publicity  and  of  influencing  the  public  mind  through  the  press,  the 
pulpit,   the  schools,  the  municipal  government,  and  other  means. 


284  OCCUPATIONS 

Demand  for  specially  trained  secretaries.  At  this  writing  (191 2) 
there  are  3700  positions  in  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations  on  this 
continent  which  need  to  be  manned.  The  secretaryship  does  not  call 
for  a  large  number  of  men.  When  the  first  secretary  was  employed  in 
London,  there  were  sixteen  applicants  for  the  position.  The  Inter- 
national Committee  has  a  long  waiting  list  of  men  who  would  like  to 
enter  the  work  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association.  When  a 
secretary  in  a  town  of  forty  thousand  resigned  recendy,  there  were  over 
twenty  local  applicants  for  the  position.  Most  of  these  had  little  idea  of 
the  responsibilities  or  duties  of  this  important  office.  In  fact,  no  one  of 
these  men  was  appointed.  The  Association,  through  its  international 
and  state  committees  and  metropolitan  secretaries,  has  an  elaborately  or- 
ganized system  for  seeking  out  suitable  men  for  Association  service,  and 
yet  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  find  the  right  kind  of  men  and  to  place 
them  properly. 

THE  PRIVATE  SECRETARY 

A  man  of  large  affairs  usually  has  more  on  his  hands 
than  he  can  give  personal  attention.  Here  then  is  the  task 
of  the  secretary  —  to  meet  callers,  answer  telephones,  write 
letters,  file  correspondence,  manage  details,  to  be  in  short, 
what  he  is  often  called,  "  the  executive's  second  self." 

Qualifications.  The  general  qualifications  for  this  work 
are  tact  or  adaptability  and  the  sense  of  organization  or 
ability  to  systematize  work.  Usually,  stenography  and  type- 
writing are  essential.  Special  qualifications  vary  with  the  de- 
mands of  the  particular  position.  One  young  man,  absolutely 
without  experience,  received  $100  a  month  for  part-time  work 
because  he  knew  economics  and  English  composition,  and 
a  wealthy  business  man  wanted  to  become  author  of  a  book. 

A  very  small  number  of  schools  prepare  definitely  for 
this  work.  Practically  all  secretaries  have  taken  high-school 
courses  as  a  beginning,  but  the  additional  training  has  been 
varied.  Some  have  studied  law,  some  have  come  from  news- 
paper work,  others  are  stenographers  and  typewriters  who 
have  graduated  from  business  colleges  and  while  in  the  regu- 
lar employ  have  been  selected  to  assist  the  general  manager. 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        285 

Remuneration  and  advancement.  Salaries  range  from  $  1 5 
per  week,  what  may  be  expected  by  a  young  man  at  the 
start,  to  the  several  thousands  per  year  received  by  the 
President's  private  secretary. 

There  is  one  important  advantage  in  this  vocation,  more- 
over, which  should  be  borne  in  mind.  The  secretary  is  in 
a  splendid  position  to  learn.  He  sees  a  successful  man  at 
work,  and  has  full  access  to  valuable  information,  much  of 
which  is  private  and  could  not  be  secured  elsewhere.  This 
means  he  is  in  a  good  training  school,  with  the  best  of 
opportunities  to  become  a  man  of  importance.  It  is  rather 
interesting  to  note  that  when  Mr,  Taft  was  president  and 
Mr,  Hillis  his  private  secretary,  the  former  had  a  salary  of 
$50,000,  the  latter  $7000;  but  that  shortly  afterwards  ex- 
President  Taft  received  $5000  as  a  professor  at  Yale,  while 
ex-Secretary  Hillis  became  head  of  a  commercial  concern 
at  $20,000. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Talk  with  the  physical  director  of  your  local  Y.  M.  C.  A.  or  high 
school  about  his  work.    Ask  his  advice  about  it  as  a  vocation. 

2.  If  your  town  has  any  organized  form  of  social  work,  such  as  a 
social-service  league,  what  service  does  this  organization  render  the 
community  ? 

3.  Learn  from  some  inspector  of  the  health  department,  building 
department,  or  labor  department,  what  you  can  concerning  his  vocation. 

4.  Do  any  of  your  local  manufacturers  carry  on  welfare  work?  If 
so,  interview  the  social  worker  who  has  charge  of  it. 

5.  If  your  town  has  a  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  what  are 
the  activities  of  its  general  secretary  ? 

6.  Have  any  of  your  friends  become  private  secretaries.?  Of  what 
advantage  would  it  be  for  a  young  law  graduate  to  be  private  secretary 
to  some  prominent  lawyer? 


286  OCCUPATIONS 

THE  PRINTING  TRADES 

There  is  a  constant  increase  in  the  amount  of  printed 
matter  demanded  by  the  American  pubUc,  and  hosts  of 
printers  are  needed  to  meet  this  demand.  Their  work  has 
grown  to  be  much  more  complex  than  when  one  man  in 
his  small  plant  edited  and  printed  the  local  paper  and  did 
all  the  job  work  required.  Now  this  man's  activities  would 
represent  several  different  trades. 

Typesetter.  When  Benjamin  Franklin  learned  to  be  a 
printer,  he  stood  before  a  "  case  "  in  which  the  type  was 
kept  in  a  series  of  little  boxes.  The  young  printer  had 
to  learn  this  case  thoroughly,  so  that  with  his  copy  before 
him  his  hand  could  go  quickly  and  accurately  to  the  com- 
partments containing  the  proper  letters.  And  in  many 
oflfices  to-day  the  use  of  the  case  is  still  maintained ;  much 
of  the  typesetting,  however,  is  now  done  by  the  linotype 
and  monotype  machines.  Their  use  is  perhaps  best  learned 
in  schools,  maintained  in  most  of  the  large  cities,  whose 
courses  are  only  a  few  months  long. 

Boys  often  commence  by  making  themselves  handy  around 
the  composing  room,  and  later  are  called  upon  to  set  type  or 
to  distribute  it  again  into  the  proper  boxes.  While  this  may 
be  readily  learned,  it  takes  time  to  acquire  accuracy  and 
speed.  Wages  at  the  start  are  from  $4  to  $6  a  week,  and 
are  increased  until  at  the  close  of  his  apprenticeship  of  four 
years  the  full  journeyman  scale  is  received,  A  good  type- 
setter, or  compositor,  as  he  is  called,  earns  about  $1000  a  year. 

In  connection  with  typesetting  is  the  work  of  proof- 
reading. After  the  type  is  set  up  a  "proof,"  or  preliminary 
impression,  is  struck  off,  which  is  taken  by  the  proofreader 
and  compared  in  spelling,  punctuation,  and  paragraphing 
with  the  original  manuscript.  Besides  technical  training  the 
proofreader  needs  a  good  general  education  and  an  accurate 
knowledge  of  the  English  language. 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS       287 

Electrotyper.  When  a  circular  is  to  be  made  in  a  large 
number  of  copies,  or  a  book  set  up  which  may  run  through 
several  editions,  "plates"  are  made,  and  impressions  are 
printed  from  these  instead  of  from  type.  These  plates  are  of 
hard  metal,  and  the  making  of  them  requires  several  distinct 
processes.  The  workman  is  called  an  electrotyper,  and  usu- 
ally is  employed  by  a  book-publishing  house,  a  big  newspaper 


jy      '  »^ 


The  engraver 

This  picture  itself  is  an  example  of  the  engraver's  work,  as  are  the  other  pictures 
shown  on  preceding  pages 

plant,  or  a  concern  engaged  exclusively  in  electrotyping. 
The  wages  are  rather  better  than  for  typesetting,  but  posi- 
tions are  by  no  means  so  numerous. 

Engraver.  The  pictures  in  this  book,  as  well  as  similar 
pictures  in  magazines  and  newspapers,  have  been  made  by 
the  half-tone  process.  The  work  is  highly  skilled,  and  is 
usually  done  by  concerns  making  this  their  exclusive  busi- 
ness. The  demand  for  engravers  is  large,  and  workmen 
receive  approximately  $1200  per  year,  but  at  present  there 


288 


OCCUPATIONS 


are  few  schools  of  instruction,  and  for  most  boys  the  only 
way  open  is  through  apprenticeship. 

Pressman.  In  the  pressroom  the  type  and  illustrations 
arranged  in  forms  are  brought  into  firm  contact  with  paper 
by  means  of  presses,  and  thus  the  printed  sheets  are  made. 
The  presses  for  printing  range  all  the  way  from  small  job 
presses  for  printing  cards  to  immense  self-feeding  cylinder 
presses  of  intricate  mechanism. 

Ruling,  binding,  embossing.  These  positions  are  found 
in  most  printing  plants  of  any  size,  but  their  desirability  is 


A  modern  printing  press 

Newspapers  are  printed,  folded,  and  delivered  automatically  at  the  rate  of  a  million 

pages  per  hour.    Such  a  press,  however,  is  but  one  of  the  many  devices  used  in 

making  the  printer's  work  more  highly  efficient 

somewhat  lessened  by  the  competition  of  girls  working  for 
low  wages  and  bv  the  use  of  automatic  machines. 

Advantages  and  disadvantages  of  the  printer's  trade.  One 
advantage  is  the  steady  employment,  possibly  no  other  trades- 
man being  more  regularly  employed  than  he.  Again,  his 
work  may  keep  him  in  touch  with  new  ideas,  which  may 
prove  of  particular  value  to  him,  as  was  the  case,  for  instance, 
of  a  friend  who  was  interested  in  law  and  whose  work  was 
setting  type  for  new  law  books.  As  a  rule,  the  printer's 
activities  include  sufficient  variety  to  prevent  any  monotony 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS       289 

in  the  day's  work.  Disadvantages  are  found  in  the  constant 
menace  of  lead  poisoning,  the  bad  air  in  which  job  work  and 
electrotyping  are  often  done,  and  the  night  work  required  by 
the  daily  newspaper. 

Qualifications  for  success.  To  make  a  success  of  this 
work,  a  boy  should  have  good  eyesight  and  sound  lungs,  ac- 
curacy and  quickness  of  movement,  and  should  not  be  afraid 
of  soiling  his  hands.  While  a  good  common-school  educa- 
tion is  absolutely  necessary,  "  if  he  is  fortunate  enough  to 
have  the  advantage  of  high  school,"  writes  the  Secretary  of 
the  International  Typographical  Union,  "he  will  find  the 
additional  education  obtained  therein  of  advantage  to  him." 
Correct  spelling,  proper  punctuation,  and  a  knowledge  of 
grammar  are  especially  important. 

Boys  who  have  learned  the  business  from  the  ground  up 
and  who  have  a  love  for  the  work  may  often  do  better  by 
setting  up  in  business  for  themselves.  Many  who  do  this, 
however,  fail  to  make  more  than  their  regular  wages,  the 
reason  usually  being  their  lack  of  business  ability.  A  young 
man  should  remember,  then,  that  knowing  the  work  and  en- 
joying every  phase  of  it  is  not  enough,  but  should  ask  him- 
self. Do  I  know  how  to  buy  the  proper  stock  ?  to  employ 
and  manage  men  .?  to  deal  with  customers  and  work  up  a 
good  trade  ?  to  keep  careful  oversight  of  my  business  so 
that  I  can  tell  where  the  losses  are  and  where  my  profits 
come  in  ?  An  ambitious  young  printer  who  can  answer 
these  questions  satisfactorily  or  who  can  learn  to  do  so 
has  good  prospects  for  success  in  a  business  of  his  own. 

THE  ARTIST  AND   ILLUSTRATOR 

This  vocation  may  call  up  visions  of  great  painters,  like 
Millet,  Landseer,  or  Turner,  but  what  is  meant  here  is  a 
much  more  ordinary  sort  of  work,  which,  although  perhaps 
less   in   favor  among   artists    themselves,   is    demanded   by 


290  OCCUPATIONS 

business  and  serves  a  useful  purpose.  We  have  in  mind 
distinctly  commercial  work. 

Air-brush  worker.  7  his  is  a  very  humble  form  of  art 
work.  After  the  design  is  stenciled  on  the  cloth,  the  worker 
does  not  spread  the  color  with  an  ordinary  paintbrush,  but 
throws  it  in  a  fine  spray  by  means  of  an  air  brush.  The 
spray  from  the  brush  saturating  the  air  makes  this  kind  of 
art  work  a  most  unhealthful  one.  The  work  is  seasonal,  the 
wages  are  from  $6  to  $15  per  week,  and  real  artistic  ability 
can  demand  little  more. 

Novelty  painter.  In  this  work  such  articles  as  powder  and 
puff  boxes  and  other  celluloid  articles  are  decorated  by  hand. 
Combs,  too,  are  painted,  the  designs  usually  being  engraved 
beforehand  and  the  gold  applied  with  a  small  brush.  Neat- 
ness and  speed  are  necessary.  The  work  is  seasonal,  and 
the  wages  are  from  $18  to  $25  per  week. 

Catalogue  illustrator.  The  mail-order  houses  issue  cata- 
logues twice  each  year,  and  the  wholesalers  lay  before  their 
trade  the  latest  designs  in  costumes,  fabrics,  trimmings, 
buttons,  braids,  etc.  Fashion  artists  are  employed  to  copy 
these,  often  in  full  color,  featuring  the  strongest  selling 
points.  These  copies  are  usually  paid  for  by  the  piece, 
something  like  $3  to  $S  per  figure.  This  same  work  is  also 
utilized  by  the  houses  dealing  in  patterns.  Part  of  this  illus- 
trating, such  as  that  in  catalogues  issued  by  high-class  jewelry 
firms,  requires  no  mean  ability,  and  is  well  rewarded. 

Magazine  illustrator.  There  is  great  demand  among  the 
magazine  publishers  for  attractive  cover  designs,  appropriate 
decorations,  and  illustrations  for  stories.  Sometimes  the  de- 
signs are  suggested  by  the  editor,  who  employs  someone  to 
do  the  sketching  for  him.  More  often,  however,  the  draw- 
ing is  produced  by  some  independent  artist  and  submitted 
by  him  to  whatever  magazine  he  thinks  may  find  it  suitable. 
If  he  shows  ability  to  turn  out  usable  illustrations  when 
needed,  he  may  secure  the  firm  as  a  regular  customer. 


MISCELLANF.OrS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        291 

Book  illustrator.  To  illustrate  a  book  satisfactorily  re- 
quires considerable  skill  as  an  artist  and  the  rare  ability  to 
work  well  with  both  author  and  publisher. 

Advertising  illustrator.  This  is  perhaps  at  present  the 
best  paying  of  all  fields  for  the  commercial  artist.  As  much 
as  ^1000  has  been  given  for  a  full-page  drawing,  and  when 
it  is  realized  that  to  secure  the  fourth-cover  full  page  in 
color  of  TJie  Ladies'  Home  Journal  for  one  insertion  costs 
the  advertiser  $10,000,  it  is  clear  that  the  drawing  may  be 
cheap  at  the  price  stated  above.  Advertising,  in  the  main, 
is  bought  and  sold  like  other  commodities,  this  work  being 
done  by  advertising  agencies.  Some  of  these  agencies  have 
a  staff  of  artists  in  their  regular  employ.  Any  artist,  however, 
who  has  a  drawing  may  submit  it  to  these  agencies  or  to 
some  one  of  a  very  few  companies  who  deal  exclusively  in 
advertising  illustrations.  For  success  in  this  work,  it  may  be 
added,  the  artist  needs  a  sense  of  commercial  values  and 
some  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  advertising. 

The  practical  versus  the  ideal.  It  is  thus  evident  that 
important  commercial  openings  may  be  secured  by  artists. 
Many  of  them,  however,  scorn  commercial  work,  preferring 
to  live  on  "  bread  and  water  "  rather  than  put  their  talent  to 
this  sort  of  practical  use.  Such  an  attitude  should  not  be 
too  severely  condemned,  since  it  is  partly  because  the  artist's 
ideas  are  different  from  those  of  practical  persons  that  he  is 
an  artist  at  all.  Still,  there  is  no  advantage  in  being  falsely 
devoted  to  one's  profession,  and  the  young  man  who  can  both 
aspire  to  emulate  the  masters  and  turn  his  talents  toward 
practical  use  is  the  ideal  artist  who  daily  makes  a  success 
of  his  work. 


292  OCCUPATIONS 


THE  PHOTOGRAPHER 


A  good  way  to  test  yourself  regarding  photography  as 
a  vocation  is  to  begin  as  an  amateur.  Cameras  can  be 
purchased  at  a  wide  range  of  prices  and  of  several  styles, 
both  film  and  plate.  The  film  sort  are  much  more  con- 
venient, though  if  you  yield  to  the  slogan  "you  press  the 
button  and  we  '11  do  the  rest "'  you  will  never  learn  photogra- 
phy as  the  professional  practices  it. 

Use  of  a  plate  camera.  If  you  are  seriously  interested  in 
photography  as  a  career,  get  a  plate  machine  such  as  the 
professionals  use.  Read  the  instruction  book  with  care,  visit 
some  photographer  to  see  how  he  does  the  work,  and  then 
fit  up  a  dark  room.  Begin  to  take  pictures  and  do  better 
each  time.  Subscribe  for  some  good  magazine  and  read 
some  books  on  photography. 

Necessity  of  business  ability.  Does  this  business  interest 
you  as  a  life-career  ?  If  so,  choose  some  successful  photog- 
rapher and  learn  the  business  wdth  him.  You  will  find  sev- 
eral kinds  of  work  to  do.  First,  there  is  the  purely  business 
side.  A  studio  must  be  rented,  supplies  purchased,  adver- 
tising placed,  and  displays  made.  While  this  may  seem 
little  like  photographic  work,  to  neglect  it  means  failure. 
Photographers  in  whom  the  artistic  is  highly  developed  are 
apt  to  neglect  these  things,  and  thus  fall  far  short  of  the 
financial  rewards  they  otherwise  deserve. 

Taking  pictures.  When  the  photographer  is  ready  for 
business  the  pictures  must  be  taken.  Here  is  an  activity 
requiring  skill  in  dealing  with  people  as  well  as  photo- 
graphic knowledge.  The  operator  has  need  of  the  salesman's 
ability  when  it  comes  to  finding  out  what  is  desired  or  to 
stimulating  a  new  demand.  It  requires  a  high  degree  of 
tact  to  get  natural  poses  ;  people  must  be  cleverly  enter- 
tained and  made  to  forget,  as  far  as  possible,  that  they  are 
having  their  pictures  taken.    It  also  requires  a  high  degree 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        293 

of  art  to  pose  them  so  that  their  strong  and  attractive  quali- 
ties will  be  brought  out  dearly.  People  no  longer  demand 
that  whatever  their  true  appearance  is  they  shall  be  pictured 
as  beautiful,  neither  do  they  wish  their  blemishes  and  weak 
features  emphasized. 

Developing  and  retouching.  After  the  picture  is  taken 
it  must  be  developed.  This  is  an  intricate  chemical  process ; 
the  good  dark-room  operator  must  know  the  influence  of  each 
chemical  element  in  the  developer,  and  if  he  is  able  to  work 
in  harmony  with  the  one  who  takes  the  picture,  a  better  nega- 
tive results.  The  negative  once  made  is  next  retouched.  This 
work  is  frequently  performed  by  women.  After  retouching, 
the  prints  are  made  and  the  picture  finished. 

Much  depends  upon  the  size  of  the  business  as  to  how 
specialized  these  processes  are.  In  small  studios  or  in  those 
catering  to  a  select  clientele,  the  proprietor  may  do  all  the 
work  himself.  In  larger  studios  one  man  may  serve  only 
as  operator,  another  as  printer,  etc. 

Commercial  photography.  In  addition  to  studio  work,  as 
described  in  the  preceding  paragraph,  the  photographer  may 
take  pictures  of  machinery  for  manufacturers,  of  houses  for 
real-estate  agents,  of  parades  or  other  special  occurences  for 
newspapers,  and  the  like.  Such  work  is  known  as  com- 
mercial photography,  and  in  the  large  cities,  especially,  it 
affords  employment  for  many  workmen.  Some  of  these 
artists  are  outdoors  much  of  the  time  (as  the  operator  of 
the  motion-picture  camera) ;  others  work  indoors  (as  the 
maker  of  stereoptican  slides  or  copier  of  photographs  in 
an  engraving  house). 

Advancement.  It  requires  three  or  four  years  to  learn  all 
the  photographic  processes  well  enough  to  be  ranked  as  a 
professional.  This  time  may  be  reduced  by  attending  a  col- 
lege of  photography,  of  which,  however,  there  are  only  a  few. 
Boys  commence  at  from  $4  to  $6  per  week,  and  advance  as 
they  become  proficient,  until  they  receive  fairly  good  wages. 


294  OCCUPATIONS 

Not  a  great  deal  of  capital  is  required  to  set  up  in  busi- 
ness for  one's  self.  But  before  starting,  it  is  well  to  make 
a  thorough  study  of  the  location,  the  number  of  people 
who  are  prospective  customers,  and  the  number  of  competi- 
tors. It  requires  on  an  average  a  population  of  about  6000 
to  support  one  professional  photographer,  although,  since 
pictures  are  not  regarded  as  a  necessity,  much  also  depends 
upon  the  class  of  people. 

The  photographer  may  be  able  to  extend  his  income 
somewhat  by  doing  finishing  work  for  amateurs,  of  whom 
there  are  about  650,000  in  the  United  States  who  spend  on' 
an  average  approximately  $35  each  per  year  for  materials. 
But  this  work,  as  well  as  the  sale  of  the  materials,  is  more 
often  handled  by  regular  photographic  dealers,  who  are 
usually  associates  of  the  photographic  trust. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Discuss  briefly  the  history  of  printing.  Consult  an  encyclopedia 
or  your  general  history  text  for  information. 

2.  What  is  a  linotype  machine  ?  Write  to  the  Mergenthaler  Linotype 
Company,  New  York,  asking  them  to  tell  you  about  the  machine.  See 
one  in  operation  if  possible. 

3.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  job  press  and  a  cylinder  press  ? 

4.  Visit  the  largest  printing  establishment  in  your  vicinity.  Notice 
especially  what  improved  machinery  is  in  operation.  Ask  the  proprietor 
his  advice  about  printing  as  a  vocation. 

5.  What  phase  of  the  artist's  work  interests  you  most .''  If  you  know 
anyone  who  is  an  artist,  ask  him  about  preparation  for  an  art  career. 

6.  Have  you  ever  operated  a  hand  camera.^  Was  it  film  or  plate? 
Did  you  do  the  finishing.'' 

7.  Interview  some  local  photographer.  What  questions  should  you 
ask  him  concerning  his  work? 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        295 

THE  AERONAUT 

Popularity  of  the  calling.  The  public  press  has  had  so 
much  to  say  in  recent  years  regarding  "  flying  machines  " 
that  all  boys  have  become  interested.  Then,  too,  the  ex- 
tensive use  of  the  aeroplane  and  the  dirigible  in  present-day 
military  operations  might  seem  to  indicate  a  great  demand 
for  young  men  skilled  as  pilots.  Military  service,  however, 
would  hardly  appeal  to  our  young  men  with  sufficient  force 
to  induce  many  of  them  to  choose  their  life  work  in  this  field. 

Demand  for  aviators.  Looking  at  flying  from  the  stand- 
point of  a  vocation,  therefore,  most  of  us  must  agree  with 
the  editor  of  Aeronautics,  who  writes  very  frankly  as  follows  : 

I  do  not  see  how  flying  would  interest  students.  There  are  now 
many  more  pilots  than  there  are  jobs.  Exhibition  flying  is  rather  pre- 
carious these  days,  and  there  is  no  large  and  properly  equipped  concern 
handling  exhibitions.  The  few  wealthy  sportsmen  who  have  bought 
aeroplanes  obtain  their  chauffeur-pilots  from  the  company  furnishing 
.  the  machine.  A  very  few  aviators  are  employed  by  factories  to  give 
demonstrations  or  by  schools  in  teaching  flying. 

THE  MUSICIAN 

The  musician's  work  is  refined  in  nature  and  usually 
brings  him  in  touch  with  cultivated  people.  It  also  pro- 
vides much  opportunity  for  advancement,  since  a  musician 
of  established  reputation  is  sure  of  increasingly  frequent 
engagements  at  terms  of  a  very  satisfactory  sort. 

Education  and  training.  But  little  general  education  is  re- 
quired. An  appreciation  of  art  and  poetry  and  a  knowledge 
of  some  foreign  language  is  desirable,  but  one  language  and 
arithmetic  through  fractions  suffices,  and  many  masters  and 
noted  teachers  have  not  had  more.  But  it  is  vastly  different 
when  we  consider  the  musical  education.  The  special  train- 
ing should  be  commenced  in  boyhood,  kept  up  several  years 
in  private  lessons,  continued  either  by  a  conservatory  course 


296  OCCUPATIONS 

or  under  further  private  teachers,  and,  for  the  best  prepara- 
tion possible,  completed  by  extended  study  abroad.  This,  of 
course,  means  a  long  and  expensive  preparation. 

Its  cost,  however,  may  be  cut  down  somewhat  by  one's 
engaging  in  the  practice  of  the  profession  before  complet- 
ing the  course.  There  are  a  number  of  opportunities  for 
such  work,  such  as  singing  in  church  choirs,  playing  at 
receptions,  etc.,  part-time  efforts  which  may  yield  much 
experience  in  addition  to  money  returns. 

Remuneration.  The  profession,  however,  is  overcrowded. 
This  may  be  due  in  part  to  the  fact  that  many  people 
cultivate  music  as  an  accomplishment  or  mark  of  leisure, 
and  others,  who  would  seem  to  belong  to  such  a  class,  are 
content  to  accept  small  returns  because  of  the  social  desir- 
ability of  music.  It  appears,  then,  that  a  part  of  the  rewards 
must  be  sought  merely  in  a  love  of  the  work. 

The  financial  returns  may  be  increased  by  engaging  in 
several  related  musical  activities.  For  instance,  one  suc- 
cessful musician  leads  the  band  in  its  evening  lessons,  on 
other  evenings  plays  in  a  theater  orchestra  or  at  receptions, 
and  during  the  day  gives  private  lessons  on  violin,  guitar, 
cornet,   and  piano. 

Combination  with  trades.  Still  other  musicians,  especially 
those  who  play  in  bands  or  orchestras,  follow  some  regular 
trade  during  the  day.  For  instance,  in  a  recent  issue  of  the 
International  Musician  appeared  this  notice  : 

WANTED — 'First-class  violinist  and 
cornetist  who  are  expert  cigar  makers  by 
trade  (union  men  only),  to  locate  in  a  city 
of  10,000,  to  play  in  theater  and  dance 
orchestra;  fine  opening  for  steady  men. 
Address  E.  M.  C , . 

Of  course  a  musician's  life  is  apt  to  mean  irregular  hours 
of  eating  and  sleeping,  and  the  result  is  a  strain  on  the 
nerves  and  health. 


MISCF.LLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        297 

THE  BAKER 

The  following  reasons  why  a  young  man  of  ability  should 
enter  the  baking  business  have  been  submitted  in  a  very 
interesting  letter  by  Mr.  H.  R.  Clissold,  editor  of  the  Bakers 
Helper : 

The  usefulness  of  the  baking  industry.  No  one  can  engage  in  a 
more  useful  business  than  the  manufacture  of  good  food.  The  baker's 
chief  product  is  bread,  and  bread  is  the  chief  food  of  mankind.  Its  pro- 
duction demands  and  deserves  the  best  there  is  in  any  man  —  the  best 
training  of  heart,  head,  and  hand,  and  the  best  application  of  that  train- 
ing. A  soulless  man  will  not  have  the  best  success  as  a  baker ;  he  will 
yield  to  the  temptation  to  do  inferior  work,  and  so  fail  to  grow.  In  none 
of  the  many  commercial  activities  of  our  age  more  than  in  the  making 
of  food  is  it  important  that  a  man  be  dominated  by  high  moral  purpose. 
A  narrow-minded  man  can  never  have  the  best  success  as  a  baker.  The 
industry  offers  a  field  for  the  exercise  of  the  best  thought  and  care., 
and  the  modern  baker  has  abundant  occasion  to  use  the  highest  mental 
and  manual  training  it  is  possible  to  secure.  He  may  not  need  to  work 
at  the  bench  or  at  the  oven  ;  but  he  has  added  leverage  if  he  knows  how 
to  do  things  as  well  as  what  to  do,  and  why. 

A  broad  field  of  enterprise.  Bakers  to-day  are  doing  only  about 
half  the  business  that  should  naturally  come  to  them.  Baker-made 
bread  ought  to  have  at  least  as  good  a  place  in  public  esteem  as 
tailor-made  clothes  now  hold.  It  is  reaching  out  for  that  place,  and  is 
advancing  toward  it  more  rapidly  than  at  any  previous  time ;  but  there 
is  much  to  be  done  before  the  goal  is  secured.  The  realization  of  this 
ideal  is  worthy  of  any  man's  ambition  ;  its  achievement  will  come  only 
through  the  exercise  of  high  purpose,  clear  thinking,  wise  planning, 
persistent  effort.  In  the  last  ten  years  a  quiet  but  radical  transformation 
has  been  going  on  in  the  baking  industry ;  the  next  decade  will  witness 
the  general  recognition  of  the  change.  The  baker  is  steadily  coming  to 
his  own,  and  soon  he  will  not  (as  too  often  at  present)  be  thought  of  as 
a  man  of  low  ideals,  of  little  ambition,  of  mean  capacity  for  large  affairs. 
A  better  chance  was  never  presented  to  young  men  of  character,  of 
ambition,  of  energy,  to  take  advantage  of  a  rising  tide. 

The  improved  equipment  of  bakeries.  Neither  time  nor  space  per- 
mit details  of  the  revolution  in  the  baking  business  already  referred 
to.  It  may  suffice  to  say  that  the  dark,  ill-smelling  cellar  shop  is  fast  giv- 
ing way  to  the  specially  designed  and  carefully  built  bakery,  with  plenty 


298  OCCUPATIONS 

of  light  and  fresh  air.  with  hard  floors  and  tiled  walls,  with  lockers,  baths, 
and  white  suits  for  workmen,  with  cleanliness  and  system  everywhere. 
The  science  as  well  as  the  art  of  bread-making  is  studied ;  the  micro- 
scope, the  scales  and  the  testing  tubes  of  the  baking  chemist  have  an 
assured  place ;  luck  and  chance  in  bakery  operations  have  given  way 
to  intelligent  and  accurate  control  of  conditions.  Hand  mixing  of  dough 
is  fast  becoming  obsolete ;  hand  labor  in  the  weighing  and  molding  of 
loaves  is  being  displaced  by  automatic  mechanical  devices.  And  the 
great  improvements  already  made  in  equipment  are  but  suggestions  of 
further  improvements.  The  baker  has  developed  a  new  respect  for  the 
inventor  and  the  machinist,  and  this  trinity  are  working  together  for 
good  to-day  and  greater  good  to-morrow.  The  baker's  traditional  con- 
servatism has  given  way  to  an  almost  feverish  desire  for  better  methods, 
better  appliances,  better  results.  The  atmosphere  of  the  baking  world 
is  such  as  to  spur  any  intelligent,  ambitious  young  man  to  do  his  best. 
Rewards  are  plenty,  and  within  reach. 

The  opportunity  for  money-making.  This  is  not  the  chief  reason 
why  a  young  man  should  be  a  baker ;  yet  in  the  minds  of  some  men  it 
will  outweigh  all  others.  The  bakery  is  not  a  mint ;  but  for  all  that  it 
is  a  good  money-maker.  It  is  not  a  place  to  clean  up  many  thousands 
in  a  day,  as  in  some  fortunate  speculative  ventures ;  but  neither  is  it  sub- 
ject to  sudden  and  sweeping  losses.  It  affords  a  fine  opportunity  for 
steady  habits,  hard  work,  intelligent  methods,  sane  enterprise,  econom- 
ical management,  plain  common  business  sense,  to  tell  in  regular  and 
reasonable  profits.  In  every  town  and  city  in  the  country  are  to  be  found 
ordinary  illustrations  of  the  money-making  possibilities  of  the  baking 
business,  with  notable  illustrations  in  sufficient  number  to  warrant  a  firm 
belief  in  the  industry  so  far  as  its  financial  returns  are  concerned.  Its 
principal  product  is  universally  used,  and  in  constant  demand,  all  the 
year  round,  in  good  times  and  bad.  The  business  fluctuates  little  be- 
cause it  deals  for  the  most  part  with  a  necessity  —  not  a  luxury.  With 
every  year  there  is  an  increase  in  the  number  of  people  who  demand  the 
best  in  food,  and  are  willing  to  pay  the  best  prices  for  what  suits  them. 


EXERCISES 

1.  Have  you  ever  seen  a  monoplane,  biplane,  or  dirigible }    Explain 
the  difference  in  their  construction. 

2.  What  plans  are  under  way  for  making  flying  less  dangerous? 

3.  Interview  a  local  musician.    How  did  he  secure  his  training.''    In 
what  different  activities  does  he  engage.'' 


MISCELLANEOUS  AND  NEW  OPENINGS        299 

4.  How  do  Americans  compare  with  foreigners  in  musical  apprecia- 
tion ?    Are  we  improving  in  this  respect  ? 

5.  It  is  said  that  Argentina  formerly  spent  more  for  brass  bands  than 
for  public  education.    What  is  your  opinion  as  to  the  wisdom  of  this? 

6.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  bakery  manager  and  a  journey- 
man baker? 

7.  Report  to  the  class  on  your  visit  to  some  local  bakery. 

8.  Should  women  bake  bread,  pies,  cake,  and  the  like,  or  buy  them 
of  the  baker?  In  which  direction,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  do  we  seem  to 
be  moving  ?    What  effect  will  this  change  have  on  the  bakery  business  ? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 
Books 

Abney,  Sir  W.  De  W.  Instructions  in  Photography.  Edward  L. 
Wilson  Company,  New  York.    $1.50. 

Affleck,  G.  B.  Bibliography  of  Physical  Training  and  Hygiene. 
American  Physical  Education  Association,  Springfield,  Mass.,  191 2. 
40  cents. 

CuRTiss,  Glexn  H.,  and  Post,  Augustus.  Curtiss  Aviation  Book. 
F.  A.  Stokes  and  Company,  New  York.    $1.50. 

Devixe,  Edward  F.  Misery  and  its  Causes.  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, New  York,  1909.    $1.25. 

Ellwood,  Charles  A.  Sociology  and  Modern  Social  Problems. 
American  Book  Company,  New  York,  1910.    $1.00. 

Kelley,  Florence.  Some  Ethical  Gains  through  Legislation.  The 
Macmillan  Company,  New  York,  1905.    $1.25. 

LoENiNG,  Grover  C.  Monoplanes  and  Biplanes.  Munn  and  Com- 
pany, New  York,  1911.    ^2.50. 

Morris,  R.  C.  History  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Association  Press,  New 
York. 

Nathan,  Paul.  How  to  Make  Money  in  the  Printing  Business. 
Oswald  Publishing  Company,  New  York.    $3.00. 

Sherman,  George.  Practical  Printing.  Oswald  Publishing  Company, 
New  York.    $1.50. 

Ward,  Edward  J.  The  Social  Center.  D.  Appleton  and  Company, 
New  York,  191 3.    $1.50. 


500  OCCUPATIONS 


Pamphlets 


How  to  Make  Good  Pictures.     Eastman  Kodak  Company,  Rochester, 

N.Y.,  191 3.    25  cents. 
Physical  Education  as  a  Profession.    International  Y.M.C.A.  College, 

Springfield,  Mass.    Free. 
Printing    and    Allied    Trades.     Bureau    of    Vocational    Guidance   and 

Industrial  Education,  Buffalo.    15  cents. 
The  Secretaryship  as  a  Life  Work.    International  Y.M.C.A.  College, 

Springfield,  Mass.    Free. 
Social  Work.    Russell  Sage  Foundation,  New  York.    Free. 


Periodicals 

Aeronautics.    Monthly.    Aeronautic  Press,  New  York.    $3.00  per  year. 
Ameriaifi  Physical  Educafion  Review.    Monthly.    Springfield,  Mass. 

$3.00  per  year  of  nine  numbers. 
Association  Men.    Association  Press,  New^  York.    $1.00. 
Bakers"  Helper.    Monthly.    Bakers'  Helper  Company,  Chicago.    $1.00 

per  year. 
Photo-Era.    Monthly.    Wilfred  A.  French,  Boston.    $1.50  per  year. 
The  Atnerican  Printer.    Monthly.    Oswald  Publishing  Company,  New 

York.    $3.00  per  year. 
The  Photographic  Times.    Photographic  Times  Publishing  Association, 

New  York.    $1.50. 
The  Printing  Ay-t.     Monthly.     University    Press,    Cambridge,   Mass. 

$3.00  per  year. 
The  Process  Engraver  s  Montlily.    Spon  and  Chamberlain,  New  York. 

$2.00  per  year. 
The  Survey.   Weekly.    105  East  22d  Street,  New  York.   $3.00  per  year. 
(No  magazine  can  be  more  highly  recommended  for  social  workers.) 


PART  III 

VOCATIONAL  ADJUSTMENT 

CHAPTER  XIV 

CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK 

To  business  that  we  love  we  rise  betime,  and  go  to  with  delight.  — 

Shakespeare 

The  high  prize  of  life,  the  crowning  fortune  of  a  man,  is  to  be  born  with 
a  bias  to  some  pursuit,  which  finds  him  in  employment  and  happiness. — 
Emerson 

Know  thyself.  —  Socrates 

A  very  serious  matter  confronts  you.  The  investment  of 
yourself,  all  your  energy,  brain  power,  hopes  and  dreams  — 
it  is  the  most  important  decision  you  have  ever  been  called 
upon  to  make.  If  you  had  $50,000  to  invest,  would  you  not 
proceed  with  great  deliberation,  investigate  every  market, 
talk  with  people  who  knew  the  facts,  and  guard  carefully  this 
money  in  the  meantime  ?  You  have  more  than  that  to  invest, 
for  you  would  not  take  twice  $50,000  for  yourself.  You  are 
to  invest  yourself  in  some  vocation,  to  give  brain,  muscle, 
and  ambition  freely  at  its  demands,  gradually  to  give  up  all 
thought  of  ever  doing  anything  else  than  this,  and  to  work 
faithfully  in  its  service,  for  thirty,  forty,  fifty  years.  Are  you 
giving  this  one  really  big  investment  the  attention  it  de- 
serves .''   Let  us  consider  carefully  the  details  involved. 

The  vocation  itself.  The  various  life  occupations  have 
been  laid  before  you.  You  know  something  of  their  require- 
ments, conditions  for  success,  advantages  and  disadvantages, 

301 


302  OCCUPATIONS 

and  the  compensation.  You  have  worked  through  a  number 
of  exercises  which  have  yielded  you  much  information,  es- 
pecially concerning  the  conditions  in  your  own  community. 

Perhaps  the  members  of  your  class  can  make  a  vocational 
survey  of  the  community.  All  the  different  businesses,  from 
the  coal  company  to  the  bank,  can  be  canvassed.  The  num- 
ber of  clerks  needed,  the  demand  for  stenographers  and 
typewriters,  the  openings  for  electricians,  engineers,  car- 
penters, plumbers,  etc.,  can  be  tabulated.  Their  respective 
salaries  for  the  beginner,  for  the  average  adult,  and  for 
the  exceptionally  able  man  can  be  learned.  Charts  can  be 
made  showing  all  the  desirable  openings  there  are  in  your 
community. 

The  first  thought  of  the  ambitious  boy  and  the  dreamer, 
too,  is  to  go  away  somewhere  to  win  success.  Now  it  may 
be  that  in  some  other  locality  there  is  just  the  opportunity 
you  need  in  order  to  grow,  and  that  without  this  opportunity 
you  will  stand  still.  But  do  not  be  too  quick  to  pack  your 
trunk  ;  perhaps  )'our  own  community  has  an  even  better 
opportunity.  It  is  no  compliment  to  a  young  man's  intellect 
to  win  silver  dollars  abroad  when  he  has  overlooked  gold 
nuggets  at  home. 

Either  at  home  or  elsewhere,  there  is  some  excellent  place 
for  you.  Do  not  believe  those  carpers  who  say  there  are  no 
good  openings  left.  In  this  busy  world,  where  tremendous 
things  are  increasingly  being  accomplished,  men  able  to  do 
efficient  work  were  never  before  in  such  demand.  When 
you  come  seriously  to  choosing  your  life  work,  a  vocation 
can  be  found. 

Your  adaptability  for  the  vocation.  It  is  not  alone  the 
vocation,  as  one  is  apt  to  think,  but  the  vocation  in  rela- 
tion to  you,  which  demands  to  be  considered.  "'  Is  banking 
a  good  vocation.^"  Certainly.  "Then  I'm  going  to  be  a 
banker."  It  may  be  the  greatest  mistake  you  ever  made. 
You  like  pulleys  and  belt  wheels  and  tools  and  overalls ; 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  303 

the  bank  would  be  a  prison,  but  the  machine  shop  would 
probably  be  a  satisfying  place.  Again  let  us  impress  upon 
you  that  it  is  not  merely  the  vocation,  but  the  vocation  in 
its  relation  to  yourself,  that  you  must  consider. 

You  have  certain  strong  qualifications  and  certain  weak 
ones.  Life  is  a  great  race,  and  young  men  are  warming  up 
on  the  splendid  cinder  track  which  runs  from  here  to  suc- 
cess. Will  you  insist  on  forsaking  this  cinder  track  to  run 
through  brambles  and  over  stones  ?  Yet  that  is  just  what 
you  are  doing  when  you  go  into  a  vocation  employing  your 
weak  qualifications.  The  cinder  track  represents  your  strong 
qualifications,  and  on  it  you  can  make  good  speed. 

"But,"  you  interpose,  "cannot  I  make  my  weak  qualities 
strong  ?  Have  not  the  famous  men  of  history  done  this 
very  thing  ?  Is  this  not  the  purpose  of  education  ?  "  There 
is  much  truth  in  what  you  say,  for  we  all  admire  the  man 
who  develops  his  weaknesses  into  strength.  It  is  inspiring 
to  read  how  Demosthenes  cured  his  lisp  by  practicing  for 
long  hours  with  a  smooth  pebble  in  his  mouth,  how 
Andrew  Jackson  weeded  out  his  uncouth  ways  and  finally 
impressed  Washington  society  with  his  courtly  manners, 
and  how  Theodore  Roosevelt,  a  pale,  sickly  boy,  earnestly 
schooled  himself  to  become  our  famous  strenuous  president. 
You  can  do  much,  and  education  will  help  you  a  great  deal, 
in  making  yourself  over. 

Nevertheless,  there  may  be  a  large  element  of  danger 
in  this  kind  of  reasoning.  Many  have  the  idea  that  it  is 
easy  to  make  themselves  over  completely.  Some  hold,  in 
addition,  that  the  best  way  for  them  to  be  successful  is 
to  enter  a  vocation  demanding  the  very  qualities  now  lack- 
ing, so  that  being  spurred  on  by  the  new  demands  they  will 
strengthen  their  weak  points  and  thus  become  well-rounded 
men.  This  may  sound  well,  but  in  practice  it  is  as  if  the 
farmer  were  deliberately  to  choose  a  rocky  hillside  instead  of 
a  fertile  valley  on  which  to  grow  his  wheat,  "for  would  this  not 


304  OCCUPATIONS 

prove  him  to  be  a  very  skillful  farmer  ? "  It  would  surely  prove 
him  to  be  a  very  foolish  one,  and  the  crop  of  wheat  would 
certainly  fall  far  short  of  what  it  might  have  been  had  he 
selected  his  field  more  wisely. 

Comparison  of  your  qualifications  with  those  demanded 
by  desirable  vocations.  You  have  certain  strong  qualifica- 
tions. They  are  your  '"  fertile  fields."  Cultivate  them  with 
your  best  effort,  and  rich  returns  will  be  the  result.  You 
will  be  doing  something  that  you  can  do  well,  and  success 
as  well  as  contentment  will  be  yours;  while  the  day's  work 
will  seem  short  and  agreeable  when  once  you  have  chosen 
your  proper  vocation. 

But  how  is  this  to  be  done  ?  How  can  )-ou  find  these 
fertile  fields  .-'  Vo;/  Diiist  analyze  yourself.  You  are  to  take 
this  list  of  qualifications,  "straws  which  tell  the  way  the  wind 
blows,"  go  through  it  point  by  point,  and  see  what  you  can 
find  out  about  yourself.  You  must  make  a  self-inventory  of 
your  strong  qualifications.  No  merchant  could  conduct  a  suc- 
cessful business  if  he  had  no  idea  of  what  was  in  the  stock- 
room, the  basement,  the  second  floor,  or  on  the  shelves. 
Like  the  successful  merchant,  take  stock  of  yourself,  using 
as  a  guide  the  following  chart : 

CHART  FOR  SELF-ANALYSIS  i 

L    Physique 
L  Strength 

Strong:  For  many  occupations  muscular  strength  is  essential;  for 
example,  the  work  of  fireman,  mason,  plumber. 

Weak :  In  other  occupations  such  strength  is  not  particularly  essen- 
tial, as  in  the  case  of  piano  tuners,  bookkeepers,  and  jewelers. 

Should  you  be  classed  as  strong  or  weak  .^  What  occupations  would 
your  strength  seem  to  indicate  as  desirable? 

1  For  suggestions  in  arranging  this  outline  we  are  indebted  to  Dean 
Schneider  of  the  University  of  Cincinnati. 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  305 

2.  Health 

IVe/I :  Continuous  good  health  is  always  desirable,  but  some  occu- 
pations, such  as  that  of  traveling  salesman  or  foundry  man,  especially 
require  it. 

Sickly :  A  man  subject  to  recurring  attacks  of  illness  cannot  be  de- 
pended upon  to  work  regularly  with  others,  but  he  may  make  a  success 
of  something  he  can  do  alone,  such  as  writing,  painting,  composing,  or 
some  forms  of  piecework. 

How  are  you  to  be  classed  here }  Are  you  of  a  family  always  well  or 
ailing?  Has  your  high-school  course  been  interrupted  by  frequent  ill- 
nesses.''   What  occupations  especially  demand  continuous  health.'' 

3.  Vigor 

Vigorous :  This  is  not  the  same  as  physique  or  health,  for  a  man  may 
be  of  large  size  and  well  but  lacking  in  vigor.  It  means  that  the  vital 
functions  are  active,  that  a  man  has  "  red  blood,"  that  he  seems  con- 
stantly to  draw  from  great  reservoirs  of  power.  This  is  especially 
important  to  politicians,  and  executives  who  direct  men  personally. 

Feeble :  The  man  of  slight  vigor  would  be  unsuccessful  as  a  lawyer, 
but  he  might  do  well  as  a  court  reporter.  He  might  also  succeed  as 
a  bookkeeper,  astronomer,  chemist,  or  at  other  work  of  a  somewhat 
secluded  nature. 

To  which  class  do  you  belong.''  Classify  several  occupations  on  the 
basis  of  bodily  vigor  required.  What  vocational  suggestions  can  be 
gained  here  for  your  guidance .'' 

4.  Bodily  defects 

Sound :  Some  vocations  demand  keen  sense  organs,  a  high  develop- 
ment of  sight,  hearing,  feeling,  tasting,  touch,  or  temperature  sense, 
and  freedom  from  bodily  defects. 

Defective :  The  color-blind  man  cannot  be  a  locomotive  engineer  or 
a  salesman  at  the  silk  counter,  but  he  can  be  a  farmer  or  a  stationary 
engineer.  A  defective  palate  may  ruin  him  for  a  tea  sampler,  but  he 
may  be  a  banker  without  handicap.  Lameness  may  prevent  one  from 
becoming  a  civil  engineer,  physical  director,  or  conductor,  but  it  does 
not  preclude  success  in  such  occupations  as  telegraphy,  secretarial  work, 
and  the  like. 

Classify  yourself  here.  You  may  find  this  difficult,  for  some  defects 
can  be  revealed  only  by  expert  examination.  What  vocational  hints  do 
you  get? 


3o6  OCCUPATIONS 

II.    Mental  Type 

5.  Kind  of  work  desired 

Manual :  The  minds  of  some  men  turn  to  concrete  things.  They 
like  to  measure,  weigh,  hft,  have  hold  of  t:mgible  objects.  They  would 
be  happy  in  machine  shops  or  foundries,  or  in  building  houses  or 
repairing  automobiles. 

Mental :  The  minds  of  other  men  are  interested  in  thoughts,  not 
things.  They  would  be  repelled  by  a  greasy  monkey-wrench,  but  they 
could  build  in  imagination  a  new  design  for  a  touring  car  and  joyfully 
sketch  it  out  on  paper.  These  men  would  make  good  designers,  editors, 
teachers,  lawyers,  etc. 

Do  you  like  to  think,  plan,  dream,  and  direct  others,  or  do  you  like 
to  get  hold  of  things  with  your  hands  ?  Classify  other  occupations  than 
those  mentioned. 

6.  The  location  preferred  for  one's  work 

Outdoor:  Some  men  love  the  great  outdoors.  They  like  wintry 
blasts,  and  miles  of  snow,  and  work  which  calls  them  into  the  open. 

Indoor :  Other  men  enjoy  indoors.  When  cold  weather  comes  they 
are  especially  pleased  with  their  work  as  bookkeeper,  teacher,  barber, 
for  it  keeps  them  sheltered  from  the  storm. 

Name  several  occupations  of  the  outdoor  type ;  of  the  indoor  type. 
Which  class  appeals  to  you .'' 

7.  The  work's  breadth  of  horizon 

Large  scope :  Some  men  do  not  feel  they  are  doing  anything  unless 
at  work  on  a  task  of  big  dimensions.  These  large-scope  men  are  con- 
tented as  bridge  builders,  railroad  engineers,  contractors. 

Small  scope :  There  is  a  contrasting  type,  men  who  are  interested  in 
delicate  workmanship.  Such  men  are  content  to  adjust  the  jewels  in  a 
watch,  engrave  designs  or  letters  on  silverware  or  gold  plate,  or  turn 
out  ivory  carvings  —  a  line  of  work  that  would  drive  the  other  type  to 
desperation. 

Does  anything  have  to  look  large  before  it  seems  important  to  you .'' 
Do  you  scorn  trifles,  or  do  you  prefer  to  do  perfect  work  in  every  detail  ? 

8.  Your  sense  of  accuracy 

Accurate  .-Is  your  hand  skillful  in  physics  or  chemistry  experiments, 
or  do  you  break  apparatus  and  never  get  your  problems  very  carefully 
worked  out.''     Do  you  like  to  make  accurate  measurements,  as  the 


CHOOSINCl   VOTR  LIFE  WORK  307 

civil  engineer  or  the  skilled  machinist  does  ?  Do  you  like  the  logic  of 
geometry,  enjoy  the  careful  marshaling  of  evidence  in  debate,  possess 
the  legal  type  of  mind  ? 

Inacctirate :  In  careful  work  are  your  fingers  all  thumbs?  Does 
"  about "  suit  you  better  than  "  just  so "  ?  Do  you  enjoy  romance 
more  than  argumentation  or  geometry? 

For  what  vocations  would  your  habits  of  accuracy  fit  you?  Or  in 
which  would  your  inaccuracies  not  be  serious  ? 

9.  Orderliness  in  working 

Orderly :  An  office  boy  to  whom  the  misplaced  letter  file,  the  un- 
covered typewriter,  or  the  broken  window  cord  make  no  appeal  would 
never  advance  to  be  office  manager.  Many  positions,  such  as  that  of 
stock-keeper,  require  a  place  for  everything  and  everything  in  its  place. 

Unorderly :  Students'  desks  vary  much  in  neatness  and  order,  some 
being  always  in  pell-mell  condition.  Some  men  likewise  are  so  unsystem- 
atic that  to  keep  things  shipshape  would  consume  practically  all  their 
time,  and  they  are  obliged  accordingly  to  employ  an  orderly  private  sec- 
retary or  to  select  a  vocation  in  which  their  unorderly  habits  are  not  so 
serious  a  handicap. 

How  do  you  stand  here?  Classify  several  vocations  on  the  basis  of 
the  orderliness  required. 

10.  Activity  of  thought 

Rapid :  Some  minds  turn  out  thought-products  with  speed.  The 
shortstop,  without  the  least  hesitation,  sees  the  chance  for  a  double 
play  and  shoots  the  ball  to  second.  This  sort  of  thinking  is  demanded 
by  motormen,  locomotive  engineers,  advertisers,  and  surgeons. 

Slow:  The  thought  processes  of  others  are  slow.  If  hurried,  they 
cannot  think  at  all.  In  emergencies  they  are  helpless.  But  some  voca- 
tions do  not  call  for  quick  results ;  in  them  there  is  time  to  ponder. 

Can  you  think  quick  as  a  flash  when  much  depends  upon  it  ?  If  you 
are  a  slow  thinker,  what  vocations  might  you  choose  ? 

11.  Habits  of  study 

Studious :  The  student's  point  of  view  is  always  held  by  some  men. 
Whether  they  are  in  business,  in  a  profession,  or  on  a  farm,  they  are 
always  alert,  always  progressive,  always  studying  their  problems.  They 
may,  of  course,  open  few  books  if  these  problems  are  best  studied  in 
other  ways,  but  whatever  the  methods  employed  these  men  both  know 
and  learn.  In  vocations  where  rapid  progress  is  being  made,  only  such 
alert  learners  are  able  to  push  to  the  front. 


3o8  OCCUPATIONS 

lYon-studious :  The  minds  of  others  see  no  problems.  They  are  sat- 
isfied with  things  as  they  are,  and  the  call  to  study  seems  useless  and 
the  demand  for  change  an  irritation.  It  may  be  difficult  for  any  pupil  to 
see  that  he  belongs  in  this  class,  since  he  studies  every  day,  but  the  test 
is  whether  he  is  eager  for  knowledge  and  will  keep  on  studying  after 
leaving  school.  If  he  sees  few  problems  and  cares  little  for  study,  he 
should  choose  some  vocation  in  which  change  and  improvements  are  slow. 

Are  you  mentally  alert,  possessed  of  much  curiosity,  alive  to  new  and 
progressive  methods,  or  is  your  mind  rather  content  and  inclined  to  be 
bored  by  study  ?   List  several  occupations  adapted  to  each  type  of  mind. 

12.  Originality  in  ideas 

Original:  The  original  man  is  fertile  in  suggestions;  his  mind  is 
creative,  and  this  quality  ought  to  render  him  proficient  in  advertising, 
illustrating,  designing,  and  inventing. 

Imitative :  These  copy ;  they  have  few  or  no  new  ideas  of  their  own. 
They  greatly  outnumber  the  first  class.  They  succeed  best  in  conserv- 
ative vocations. 

In  which  class  are  you.''  Which  vocations  need  new  ideas  more 
than  others? 

III.    Temperament 

13.  The  desire  for  security 

Dari/ig :  Many  men  like  to  take  a  chance.  They  are  ready  for  new 
enterprises.  Such  men  are  fitted  for  stock  speculations,  real-estate 
developments,  putting  newly  patented  articles  on  the  market,  selling 
on  a  commission  basis. 

Careful :  Insecurity  wears  on  the  nerves  of  some  men.  Instead  of 
being  a  stimulus,  it  paralyzes  their  best  effort.  Such  men  do  their 
maximum  work  on  stated  salaries  or  in  vocations  where  the  rewards, 
though  not  large,  are  relatively  certain. 

Classify  yourself  as  to  security.  Classify  several  occupations.  What 
vocational  suggestions  are  you  able  to  draw  from  these? 

14.  Changeableness,  or  novelty  in  work 

"  Recently  two  of  my  students,"  says  Dean  Schneider  of  the  Engi- 
neering School,  University  of  Cincinnati,  "  were  not  doing  well ;  both 
were  getting  into  a  condition  of  unrest.  One  was  in  a  railroad  shop  ;  he 
complained  that  every  job  was  different  from  every  other  job,  that  he  was 
sent  here  and  there,  that  there  was  no  continuity  to  his  work,  and  that  he 
was  getting  nervous.    The  other  complained  that  there  was  not  enough 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  309 

variety  to  his  work,  that  it  was  too  confining,  that  he  could  not  move 
about  and  do  things  all  the  time,  and  that  he  was  getting  nervous.  We 
gave  each  the  other's  place  and  both  are  swinging  along  and  learning 
most  satisfactorily." 

Changing :  Name  several  occupations  whose  duties  call  for  changing 
activities. 

Settled :  Name  several  whose  duties  are  of  a  routine  nature. 

Do  you  like  new  tasks  ?  Do  you  enjoy  doing  the  old  tasks  in  differ- 
ent ways,  or  do  you  form  habits  readily  ?  Do  you  enjoy  doing  things 
over  and  over  in  the  same  way?  As  you  grow  older  are  you  likely  to 
tend  toward  the  changing  or  the  settled  kind  of  work  1 

15.  Executive  ability  in  directing  others 

Directive :  The  desire  to  direct  others  is  deeply  implanted  in  some 
men.  They  possess  aggressiveness  and  enjoy  shouldering  responsibility, 
of  saying  to  the  general  manager,  "  Give  me  a  good  crew  and  I  '11  see 
that  it 's  done  on  time."  This  is  a  trait  of  great  value  to  politicians, 
superintendents,  foremen,  and  all  personal  leaders  of  men. 

Dependent :  Then  there  is  the  man  who  takes  orders  instead  of  giving 
them.  He  is  retiring  and  sensitive,  and  his  best  work  can  be  done  only 
when  stimulated  by  praise  and  appreciation.  A  man  of  this  type  might 
fail  dismally  as  physical  director,  lawyer  or  railroad  president,  yet  make 
an  excellent  chief  clerk,  chemist,  confidential  adviser,  or  statistician. 

Do  you  enjoy  standing  upon  your  own  feet  ?  Do  you  like  directing 
others,  or  to  be  told  what  to  do,  to  have  others  bear  the  responsibility  ? 

16.  The  kind  of  motive  preferred 

Afateria/istic :  This  type  of  man  does  things  mainly  as  a  means  to  an 
end  — ■  the  securing  of  the  material  reward.  He  tests  out  every  project  by 
this  searching  question,  Does  it  pay?  If  it  does  not,  he  drops  it  for  one 
that  does.  The  prospect  of  pay  is  his  stimulus,  and  with  it  as  a  ruling 
motive  he  presses  forward. 

Idealistic :  This  type  regards  skillful  work  as  an  end  in  itself.  There 
is  joy  for  him  in  the  mere  doing  of  things  well.  He  does  work  poorly 
paid  perhaps,  yet  if  it  satisfies  his  instinct  of  workmanship,  he  is  happy. 

Which  are  you?  If  you  are  a  materialist,  what  vocations  will  you 
avoid?    If  an  idealist,  what  vocations  might  you  seek? 

17.  The  degree  of  control 

Deliberate :  The  deliberate  man  always  thinks  before  he  acts,  and 
while  others  around  him  may  be  acting  rashly  he  remains  cool  and  col- 
lected.   Such  a  man  is  guided  by  his  reason,  and  in  consequence  is  apt 


3IO  OCCUPATIONS 

to  be  cold  and  lacking  in  friendliness.  But  men  respect  his  ability  and 
have  confidence  in  what  he  says. 

Ijitpulsive :  The  impulsive  man  is  more  under  the  control  of  his 
instincts  and  emotions,  and  as  a  result  he  often  acts  at  once  and  thinks 
afterwards.  Usually  he  is  warm-hearted  and  has  many  friends.  Perhaps 
as  a  bookkeeper  or  an  accountant  he  would  fail,  yet  his  genial,  impulsive 
manner  may  bring  him  great  success  as  a  foreman,  an  orator,  or  a 
politician. 

For  greatest  success  in  the  following  vocations  should  a  man  tend 
toward  the  deliberate  or  the  impulsive  type:  jurist.'^  retail  salesman? 
minister?  financier?  statistician?  playground  director?  As  you  grow  older 
are  you  likely  to  change  toward  the  deliberate  or  the  impulsive  type? 

18.  Adaptability  to  people  and  conditions 

Adaptable :  This  is  a  quality  some  men  have  developed  to  a  high 
degree  of  perfection.  Like  the  arctic  mammals  whose  fur  is  white  in 
winter  but  brown  in  summer,  they  adjust  themselves  to  every  changing 
situation.  They  are  "  good  mixers."  This  ability  is  very  much  needed 
by  the  insurance  solicitor,  the  newspaper  reporter,  the  photographic 
operator,  the  minister,  and  the  politician. 

Self-centered :  This  type  is  relatively  unyielding;  they  do  not  bend 
easily  in  give-and-take  relations  with  their  fellow  men.  This  lessens  a 
man's  power  to  work  with  people,  but  it  does  not  by  any  means  hinder 
to  the  same  degree  a  research  scientist,  a  bookkeeper,  or  a  statistician. 

Can  you  suit  your  thought  and  action  to  the  changing  hour?  Can 
you  bend  without  breaking  ?  Or  do  you  like  to  have  things  just  as  you 
left  them,  to  have  people  "  mind  their  own  business  "  and  leave  you 
alone?  Classify  the  following  vocations  according  to  the  relative  degree 
of  adaptability  required  :  that  of  reporter  ?  stationary  engineer  ?  Y.M.C.A. 
secretary?  lawyer?  journeyman  plumber?  president  of  the  llnited  States? 

Self-analysis  card.  Have  you  answered  every  one  of 
these  questions  frankly  to  yourself }  You  need  not  tell  any- 
one else  what  was  found  out,  but  do  you  yourself  know  where 
you  stand  t  Pass  none  of  them  by  without  serious  thought. 
Now  you  must  get  this  information  on  paper.  To  have  the 
facts  is  not  enough  ;  you  should  make  a  score  card  of  your- 
self. Notice  the  following  self-analysis  card.  Here  is  the 
same  list  of  qualities  you  have  just  been  working  over.  On 
the  left  is  one  type,  on  the  right  is  the  contrasting  type. 


CHOOSING  YOUR    I.IKF.  WORK 


311 


The  degree  in  which  the  quaUty  is  possessed  is  indicated  by 
"very  high,"  "high,"  "medium." 

Take  "Outdoor"  and  "Indoor,"  for  example.  The  boy 
who  dehghts  to  feed  cattle  during  a  blizzard,  to  spend  his 
spare  time  skating,  should  probably  rank  himself  in  the  "  very 
high"  degree  column,  next  "Outdoor"  on  the  left-hand 
"  Type  "  column.  The  boy  who  likes  to  spend  his  recesses  in 
reading  instead  of  coasting,  and  enjoys  nothing  more  than  a 
book  and  the  open  fireplace,  should  probably  rank  himself 
very  low  as  an  "Outdoor"  type,  or,  as  it  is  arranged  on 
the  score  card,  check  himself  up  in  the  "very  high"  de- 
gree column,  next  "  Indoor  "  on  the  right.  Where  would  you 
check  yourself  ? 

SELF-ANALYSIS  CARD 


Quality 

Type 

Degree  in  which 
Quality  is  shown 

Type 

X 

>x 

I.  Physique 

Weak 
Sickly 
Feeble 
Defective 

Mental 

Indoor 

Small  scope 

Inaccurate 

Unorderly 

Slow 

Non-studious 

Imitative 

Careful 

Settled 

Dependent 

Idealistic 

Impulsive 

Self-centered 

2.  Health 

3-  Vigor 

4.  Bodily  defects    .    . 
II.  Mental  type 

5.  Kind  of  work     .    . 

6.  Location   of  work 

7.  Breadth  of  horizon 

8.  Sense  of  accuracy 

9.  Orderliness     .    .    . 

10.  Activity 

1 1 .  Habits  of  study     . 

12.  Originality  .... 
III.  Temperament 

13.  Security 

14.  Changeableness    . 

15.  Executive  ability 

16.  Kind  of  motive  .    . 

17.  Degree  of  control 

18.  Adaptability    .    .    . 

Well 

Vigorous 

-Sound 

Manual 

Outdoor 

Large  scope 

Accurate 

Orderly 

Rapid 

Studious 

Original 

Daring 

Changing 

Directive 

Materialistic 

Deliberate 

Adaptable 

312  OCCUPATIONS 

On  a  plain  sheet  of  paper  make  a  copy  of  tlie  self-analysis 
card,  then  take  yourself  in  hand.  Run  down  the  list  of  quali- 
ties one  by  one.  Make  a  small  cross  in  the  column  which 
your  candid  opinion  indicates  is  correct.  Remember  that  it 
is  no  disgrace  to  find  yourself  in  this  column  or  in  that. 
For  some  of  the  world's  greatest  men  the  majority  of  check 
marks  would  be  in  columns  on  the  left,  for  others,  on  the 
right.  But  it  is  important  to  find  out  for  every  quality  in 
ivJiich  column  to  place  yourself.  Check  the  sheet  to  the 
bottom.  We  shall  now  leave  this  particular  point  for  a 
moment,  to  return  to  it  later  on. 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  objections  are  there  to  drifting  into  a  vocation.'' 

2.  When  asked  what  they  can  do,  why  do  boys  often  say,  "  Almost 
anything.'" 

3.  Whom  can  you  get  to  help  you  most  in  drawing  up  your  score 
card  ?   Why  can  these  persons  help  you  most  ? 

4.  What  is  the  difference  between  self-analysis  and  self-consciousness.'* 
Which  is  more  helpful  for  you  ? 

ANALYSIS   OF  VOCATION 

Study  of  the  qualifications  demanded  in  your  prospective 
vocation.  After  you  have  checked  yourself  up  on  the  analy- 
sis card,  the  next  thing  to  do  is  to  study  the  particular 
vocation  in  which  )'ou  are  most  interested.  The  best  way  to 
analyze  it  is  not  to  think  of  the  whole  vocation  in  some  hazy 
fashion,  but  to  think  of  some  particular  men  in  this  work 
and  of  some  particular  job  which  might  become  yours  if  you 
decided  ujxjn  this  occupation  as  a  life  career.  In  this  way 
you  will  be  more  defmite  in  what  is  wanted  here  —  the  clear- 
est, sharpest  thinking  you  can  do.  Before  commencing,  be 
sure  to  put  resolutely  out  of  mind  all  thoughts  of  what  the 
self-analysis  card  revealed.    You  are  interested  here  in  the 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  313 

vocation  solely,  just  as  if  you  had  no  interest  whatever  in 
how  the  analysis  of  the  vocation  would  affect  you  personally. 

Analysis  of  your  prospective  vocation.  With  this  point 
of  view,  draw  up  a  second  copy  of  the  analysis  blank  shown 
on  page  311,  writing  at  the  top  of  the  sheet  the  name  of 
the  particular  vocation  you  are  now  to  analyze.  Then  go 
down  the  list  point  by  point,  making  a  small  cross  in  the 
proper  column.  For  certain  points  you  will  have  some  diffi- 
culty in  deciding  which  column  is  to  have  the  cross.  If 
some  of  these  points  seem  impossible  of  classification,  do 
not  spend  much  time  in  puzzling  over  them.  Skip  them 
for  the  present  and  check  up  the  others,  then  come  back  to 
them.  You  will  probably  discover  that  your  knowledge  of 
the  particular  vocation  is  very  much  limited,  and  that  more 
investigation  of  it  can  profitably  be  made.  Even  after  this 
additional  study  is  made,  however,  the  card  may  remain 
only  partially  filled  in.  Do  not  be  discouraged  over  this, 
since  in  trying  to  check  up  the  other  points,  you  have  as- 
sumed the  student's  attitude  toward  a  prospective  vocation, 
and  this  action  cannot  but  help  you  in  your  proper  choice. 

Comparing  the  two  analysis  cards.  When  you  finally 
come  to  compare  the  two  analysis  cards,  do  they  fit  together 
like  a  dovetailed  joint,  or  are  they  opposed  like  two  sworn 
enemies .-'  Frankly,  after  looking  them  over  and  comparing 
them  point  by  point,  what  do  you  think  is  the  prospect  of 
making  a  highly  successful  career  out  of  the  combination  .? 

You  may  meet  difficulties  in  analyzing  yourself  or  the 
vocation,  or  in  seeing  the  relations  between  them.  In  such 
cases  it  may  be  well  to  get  help  from  your  chum,  your 
parents,  or  your  teachers.  Again,  if  in  your  high  school  or 
in  your  town  there  is  a  vocational  counselor,  consult  him. 
From  him  you  will  get  expert  attention  which  is  likely  to 
be  of  lasting  influence  throughout  your  life.  When  your 
school  days  are  over,  another  source  of  advice  will  be  your 
employer.    Wide-awake  employers  are  realizing  that  if  their 


314  OCCUPATIONS 

young  men  are  not  properly  placed,  both  parties  lose,  and 
consequently  these  sensible  men  are  anxious  to  steer  their 
employees  into  suitable  positions.  "  If  we  find,"  the  employ- 
ment superintendent  of  a  leading  insurance  company  writes, 
"  that  we  have  in  the  secretary's  office  a  boy  who  has  a 
tendency  to  delve  in  figures  we  immediately  keep  watch  of 
him  and  when  an  opportunity  shows  itself  in  a  mathemati- 
cal or  statistical  division,  he  is  transferred  thereto.  On  the 
other  hand,  when  a  boy  in  the  latter  division  is  indifferent 
to  figures  but  literarily  inclined  he  is  given  an  opportunity 
in  some  department  where  those  talents  are  needed  and 
developed."  Too  many  companies,  however,  are  entirely 
indifferent  in  this  matter ;  but  if  your  employer  is  inter- 
ested, and  more  of  them  are  becoming  so  all  the  time,  you 
may  expect  some  good  advice  from  him. 

Results  of  self-analysis  and  vocation-analysis.  These 
analyses  will  furnish  you  a  general  plan  of  campaign. 
They  will  not  tell  you  exactly  how  the  victory  is  to  be  won, 
but  they  will  indicate  the  strategic  points.  You  can  then, 
like  a  good  general,  mass  }'our  forces  on  these  key  situa- 
tions, a  very  necessary  plan,  but  one  which  as  yet  too 
many  young  men  neglect.  "  Se\'enty-fivc  applicants  were 
interviewed  for  a  recent  vacancy  in  our  typist  force,"  says 
Charles  H,  Luddington  of  the  Curtis  Publishing  Company. 
"At  least  fifty  were  obviously  unfitted,  and  about  twenty-five 
were  tested  before  one  competent  worker  was  secured. 

"  To  fill  the  position  of  correspondent  it  is  necessary  for 
the  Curtis  Publishing  Company  to  interview  from  ten  to  fifty 
persons  ;  to  find  a  stenographer,  fifteen  to  twenty-five  ;  a 
typist,  twenty-five  to  fifty ;  a  high-grade  clerk,  twenty  to 
twenty-five  ;  an  ordinary  clerk,  ten  to  fifteen." 

Unfortunately,  this  means  that  a  large  proportion  of  young 
people  choose  jDositions  b\'  guesswork.  They  learn  of  a  va- 
cancy, and  then  say  to  themselves  :  "Well,  that  looks  pretty 
fair.    Guess  I  '11  take  a  chance  at  it."    But  success  is  no 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  315 

chance  ;  it  is  not  won  by  the  man  who  tries  all  vocations 
and  who  tries  for  all  jobs  ;  it  is  the  result  of  effort  wisely 
and  earnestly  directed  toward  some  definite  end. 

Qualities  for  more  than  one  vocation.  It  is  also  impor- 
tant to  realize  that  you  may  be  well  fitted  for  more  than  one 
vocation.  Self-analysis  and  job-analysis  may  have  caused 
most  vocations  to  be  marked  off  your  list,  but  they  may 
also  have  revealed  that  in  two  occupations,  perhaps  three 
or  more,  you  possess  the  requisite  qualities.  If  your  prob- 
lem is  which  vocation  to  choose  out  of  two  or  more  possible 
ones,  here  are  three  bits  of  advice  which  may  help  : 

1.  Making  the  decision.  Do  not  be  overanxious  about  de- 
ciding at  once  provided  the  final  decision  is  yet  some  years 
off.  A  young  man  once  approached  us,  greatly  worried 
over  whether  to  become  a  college  professor  or  a  profes- 
sional man,  and  he  had  done  barely  a  half  year  of  his  high- 
school  course!  Do  not  try  to  have  everything  so  fully 
planned  that  you  will  be  writing  down  exactly  what  work 
is  to  be  done  on  a  certain  day  ten  years  from  now.  It  is 
sometimes  enough  to  know  the  general  direction  you  should 
take  ;  the  details  may  be  left  to  adjust  themselves.  In  the 
particular  case  mentioned  the  young  man  had  at  least  three 
and  a  half  years  of  the  same  course  in  high  school  ahead 
of  him,  whether  he  decided  on  law  or  teaching,  and  it  was 
unwise  to  waste  his  efforts  over  what  was  then  an  almost 
impossible  problem  for  definite  solution.  If  your  case  is  of 
this  sort,  do  not  stop  to  decide  ;  go  ahead  to  decide.  In 
so  doing  many  knotty  problems  will  work  themselves  out. 

2.  Elimination  by  experieiice.  Eliminate  one  vocation 
after  another  by  actual  experience.  Vacations  are  harvest 
times  for  the  ambitious  boy.  They  furnish  a  time  for  testing 
himself  out.  If  you  have  decided  to  be  a  merchant,  spend 
one  vacation  in  a  dry-goods  store,  another  in  a  hardware 
store ;  or  try  your  hand  at  furniture,  and  possibly  in  a 
grocery  store  or  in  a  lumber  yard.     If  you  are  hesitating 


316  OCCUPATIONS 

between  civil  engineering  and  railroad  ofifice  work,  carry  the 
chain  for  surv^eyors  some  summer ;  sweep  out  the  railroad 
office  another  summer,  with  your  eye  on  the  auditor's  work 
and  the  secretary's  department.  Your  principal  or  superin- 
tendent may  know  of  many  openings,  in  fact  may  be  run- 
ning an  employment  bureau  on  a  small  scale  in  the  high 
school.  You  will  not  earn  a  great  deal  while  trying  out  these 
different  vocations,  but  you  ought  to  regard  the  experience 
gained  as  very  valuable. 

3.  Comparison  of  prospective  vocations.  Diagram  for 
comparison  and  choice  the  vocations  w^hich  appeal  to  you 
most  favorably.  This  is  always  helpful,  but  especially  so  if 
your  decision  must  be  made  soon.  Draw  up  a  comparison 
of  these  vocations  in  as  many  points  as  you  desire.  The 
diagram  on  the  next  page  would  serve  for  a  young  man  de- 
ciding whether  to  become  a  journeyman  plumber,  a  railroad 
engineer,  or  a  physician. 

Changing  your  vocation.  Possibly  after  several  years' 
experience  you  may  not  like  your  vocation.  You  have  en- 
dured all  the  hard  knocks  the  beginner  has  to  take,  and 
you  have  invested  your  time,'  energy,  and  thought  in  it  for 
these  years.  But  you  want  to  change.  Do  you  know  what 
Professor  Frank  Parsons,  the  pioneer  vocational  counselor, 
once  told  a  young  man  who  thought  as  you  do  }  ''You 
have  a  house  half  or  two  thirds  built,  the  walls  well  up, 
almost  ready  to  put  the  roof  on  ;  now  is  it  wise  to  leave 
the  building  you  have  so  nearly  completed  and  go  off  to  a 
new  location,  dig  a  new  cellar,  and  begin  building  all  over 
again,  when  you  do  not  know  that  you  will  like  the  new 
building  any  better  than  this  one,  after  you  get  it .?  " 

I.  Great  loss  from  changing.  Is  this  not  w^orth  consid- 
ering }  Think  what  valuable  knowledge  is  wasted  when  the 
man  who  has  been  a  successful  barber  for  ten  years  turns  to 
writing  insurance  for  two  years  and  then  goes  into  the  gro- 
cer)' Ixisincss.    llis  soft,  deft  hand,  worth  hundreds  of  dollars 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK 


317 


Deciding  Questions 


Remuneration 

Paid  while  learning  or  only  after 
having  learned  ? 

What  pay  to  beginner  ?    .     .     .    . 

Howlong  to  complete  preparation? 

Cost  of  preparation  ? 

Annual  earnings  of  average  adult  ? 
Healthfulness 

Is  the  work  especially  healthful, 
or  vice  versa  ? 

How  many  years  is  average  life 

career  ? 

Safety 

Any  special  dangers  ? 

Any  difference  in  life-insurance 

rates  ? 

Value  to  society 

Is  this  vocation  held  in  high  es- 
teem ? 

What  features  has  it  which  aid 
or  hinder  in  securing   social 

position  ? 

Advancement 

How  old  to  start  ? 

What  sort  of  work  then  ?     .     .    . 

How  high  do  salaries  run  ?  .    .     . 

Does  added  effort  secure  added 

reward  ? 

Personal  suitability 

In  view  of  my  analyses  would  this 
vocation  make  me  well  satis- 
fied?     

According  to  the  same  analyses 
would  I  probably  succeed  in  it? 


Journeyman 
Plumber 


Railroad 
Engineer 


Physician 


each  year  to  a  barber,  is  useless  to  the  insurance  sohcitor, 
while  his  knowledge  of  insurance  is  of  practical  value  to  the 
grocer.  If  you  were  trying  to  roll  up  snow  rapidly,  would 
you  work  in  turn  with  each  of  half  a  dozen  small  balls 
one  after  the  other  or  would  you  devote  all  your  effort  to 


3i8  OCCUPATIONS 

one  immense  ball  whose  every  sweep  would  draw  bushels 
of  snow  to  itself  ? 

The  architect  does  not  set  about  building  a  house  by  start- 
ing one  here  and  one  there,  trying  to  hit  upon  the  right  combi- 
nation of  parts.  He  starts  by  getting  out  his  plans  and  making 
blue  prints.  Does  not  your  life  deserve  as  much  care  as  the 
house  you  are  to  live  in  ?  When  young  men  go  through 
the  same  careful  planning  as  the  architect,  there  will  be 
fewer  life  houses  to  be  torn  down  because  not  started  right. 

2.  Advancement  in  the  savie  vocation.  Yet  some  who 
once  were  satisfied  that  they  started  right  now  want  to 
change  because  they  can  see  no  future  advancement  in  their 
vocation.  Is  there  none .-'  Let  us  see.  Your  business,  per- 
haps, is  bookkeeping,  at  $15  a  week.  That  does  not  look 
promising  after  four  years'  work,  but  do  you  know  that  your 
employer  has  two  other  factories,  both  larger .?  that  besides 
having  an  accountant  he  has  several  other  bookkeepers 
drawing  much  better  pay  than  }ou  are  '^  If  he  should  call 
you  to  the  office  to-morrow  morning  and  sa\-,  "  Can  you 
handle  the  books  at  factory  B  .? "  could  you  do  it .?  "I 
haven't  studied  any  of  the  new  wrinkles  in  bookkeeping," 
you  say.-*  Then,  too,  you  take  no  business  papers  or  maga- 
zines, you  never  have  looked  inside  of  a  book  on  account- 
ancy, and  you  did  not  know  that  the  man  who  straightened 
out  the  snarl  in  your  books  last  December  was  an  account- 
ant. Do  you  realize  that  although  bookkeepers  are  plenti- 
ful, extra  good  bookkeepers  are  not,  and  that  accountants 
receive  salaries  from  $1500  to  $3000  per  year,  with  fees 
for  outside  work  sometimes  as  high  as  $100  per  day.!*  and 
that  there  are  a  number  of  up-to-date  books  that  you  can 
read,  and  evening  schools  that  you  can  attend }  You  do  not 
have  to  leave  bookkeeping  in  order  to  climb.  Remain  a 
bookkeeper,  but  look  and  work  upward.  The  same  is  true 
of  many  other  vocations.  As  a  rule,  you  should  not  enter 
one  in  which  such  advancement  cannot  be  found. 


CHOOSING  YOUR  LIFE  WORK  319 

Self -improvement.  You  may  not  be  satisfied  with  the 
young  man  revealed  to  you  by  the  analysis  card.  The  marks 
may  be  truthful,  but  how  some  of  those  little  crosses  make 
you  wince.  You  wish  that  the  results  might  be  different. 
Can  they  be  changed } 

To  a  certain  extent,  possibly  to  a  remarkable  extent,  this 
can  be  done.  If  your  mind  wanders,  seize  it  sharply,  bring 
it  into  line,  hold  it  upon  that  theorem  in  geometry.  Are  you 
inaccurate,  saying,  "Oh,  it's  about  nine  inches,"  when  in 
reality  it  is  six  ?  Give  this  inaccuracy  thorough  treatment, 
do  that  manual  training  just  right,  thank  the  teachers  for 
handing  back  that  careless  solution  of  the  physics  problem. 
Are  you  a  leaner,  not  a  leader .?  Cultivate  vigor,  see  that 
your  digestion  is  good,  that  you  take  proper  exercise  and 
sleep  well.  Do  not  copy  work  from  others  or  wait  to  hear 
how  they  answer  that  hard  question  ;  stand  upon  your  own 
feet ;  lead  and  direct,  every  chance  you  get.  Is  your  will 
flabby  ?  Do  a  thing  because  you  have  said  it  shall  be  so,  not 
because  you  /rr/  like  doing  it.  Read  books  which  inspire 
)'0U  with  a  determination  to  do  —  and  then  act.  Do  you  lack 
adaptability  ?  Mix  with  people,  rub  off  the  rough  corners  in 
social  intercourse  ;  for  even  the  diamond  has  to  be  polished. 

In  such  ways  you  will  be  making  yourself  over.  Do  not 
be  discouraged  if  the  process  seems  slow,  for  human  nature 
is  a  growth  ;  like  an  oak,  it  is  slow  to  develop  but  is  endur- 
ing when  perfected.  Begin  now,  put  forth  effort,  and  have 
faith  ;  for  the  results  are  certain.  Your  friends  will  note  the 
difference  ;  your  analysis  cards  a  few  years  apart  will  reveal 
the  change.    Make  one  now  in  order  to  watch  yourself  grow. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Is  it  your  difficulty  to  find  one  suitable  vocation  or  to  select  one 
of  several  that  seem  suitable  ? 

2.  How  can  you  set  about  deciding  upon  your  vocation?  Mention 
several  things  you  can  do  with  profit  in  order  to  reach  the  right  solution. 


320  OCCUPATIONS 

3.  What  was  the  occupation  you  most  admired  when  you  were  a 
small  boy?  when  you  entered  high  school?  What  do  you  suppose  it 
will  be  ten  years  hence? 

4.  W^hat  helpful  conclusions  in  choosing  a  vocation  can  you  draw 
from  the  fact  that  our  ideas  of  occupations,  as  given  in  question  3. 
gradually  change? 

5.  In  what  vocations  have  you  had  first-hand  experience?  How  has 
this  experience  helped  you  in  choosing  your  life  work  ? 

6.  Choose  one  trait  revealed  by  the  analysis  card  which  is  unsatis- 
factory to  you,  and,  if  you  do  not  mind  confessing  what  it  is,  tell  just 
how  you  are  setting  about  to  mend  it. 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 

Books 

Davis,  Jesse  B.    Vocational  and  Moral  Guidance.    Ginn  and  Company, 

Boston,  1914.    $1.25. 
Fowler.  N.  C.    Starting  in  Life.    Little,  Brown,  and  Company,  Boston. 

$i.35- 
Mardex,   Orison   S.     Choosing  a  Career.     Bobbs-Merrill  Company. 

Indianapolis,   1905.     $1.00. 
Parsons,  Frank.    Choosing  a  Vocation.    Houghton  IMifflin  Company, 

Boston,  1909.    $1.00. 

Pami'iilet 

Choosing  a  Career.    Students'  Aid  Committee  of  High  School  Teachers' 
Association.  25  Jefferson  Avenue.  Brooklyn,  N.Y.    10  cents. 

Article 

Schneider,  Herman.    "  Selecting  Young  Men  for  Particular  Jobs." 
American  Machinist,  April  10,  1 91 3,  pp.  597-600. 


CHAPTER  XV 

SECURING  A  POSITION 

Knowledge  is  power  only  when  it  can  be  made  available,  practical.  — 
Orison  S.  Marden 

In  looking  for  employment,  the  most  important  thing  is  that  you  shall 
be  able  to  do  the  work  that  your  prospective  employers  want  done. — 
S.  Roland  Hall 

In  working  through  the  last  chapter  you  have  carefully 
estimated  what  qualifications  you  have  for  which  employers 
will  pay  and  also  in  what  vocation  these  qualifications  will 
command  the  most  consideration.  This  has  been  decided. 
You  are  now  ready  to  approach  some  individual  employer 
and  place  before  him  your  brain,  your  muscles,  your  ability 
to  produce,  and,  like  any  business  man,  to  seek  to  sell  your 
commodities  at  a  good  figure.  This  is  the  crucial  point, 
where  the  returns  come  in.  It  is  foolish  to  spend  long  years 
in  preparation,  with  no  thought  of  how  a  position  can  be 
secured.  From  the  first  crude  drawing  of  the  design  until 
the  finished  product  is  crated  in  the  shipping  room,  manu- 
facturers have  their  eyes  ever  on  the  market.  Your  natural 
qualifications,  your  training,  your  ability  to  produce,  repre- 
sent a  like  investment.  These  are  your  stock  in  trade. 
Should  you  not  then,  like  any  sound  business  man,  give  due 
regard  to  the  marketing  of  your  product  ?  To  show  how 
this  can  be  done  is  the  purpose  of  this  chapter. 

Choosing  an  employer.  All  firms  are  not  alike.  Some  are 
unprogressive,  years  behind  the  times.  If  you  work  for  them 
you  will  learn  bad  habits,  slipshod  methods  which  will  unfit 
you  for  the  high-grade  work  demanded  by  better  firms  or 

321 


322  OCCUPATIONS 

higher  positions.  Other  firms  have  nothing  in  promotion  to 
offer.  They  engage  an  outside  man  when  important  vacan- 
cies occur,  they  take  no  interest  in  training  subordinates, 
their  work  is  that  dull  routine  which  puts  the  brain  cells  to 
sleep,  while  their  best  employees  are  liable  to  discharge  at 
the  whim  of  the  "  boss." 

"  But  the  employee,"  says  the  former  manager  of  the 
National  Cash  Register  Company's  employment  department, 
"when  he  takes  a  position  in  oflfice  or  factory,  puts  every- 
thing he  is  and  has  into  the  venture.  He  gives  his  time, 
his  service,  his  experience,  in  return  for  a  fixed  wage.  He 
gives  more,  however.  He  surrenders  his  individuality,  his 
reputation,  his  capacity  for  growth  —  in  one  word,  his  business 
future  —  into  the  keeping  of  the  organization  he  joins." 

The  employer  investigates  you  thoroughly  before  he  gives 
you  a  position  ;  he  wants  to  take  no  chances.  Is  it  not  even 
more  important  that  you  investigate  him  thoroughly,  since 
you  have  vastly  more  at  stake  .-* 

EXERCISES 

1.  Does  the  employer  for  whom  you  are  thinking  of  working  provide 
a  system  of  instruction  for  his  employees .'' 

2.  Did  his  foremen,  superintendents,  and  managers  get  their  posi- 
tions through  merited  promotion,  through  relationship,  or  through  pull  ? 

3.  Has  he  any  middle-aged  or  old  men  working  for  him?  What 
would   become  of  you  at  forty-five  if  you  should   remain   with   him  ? 

4.  What  general  reputation  has  his  firm  ?  Would  it  be  wise  to  work 
for  him  ? 

Locating  the  vacancy.  You  are  not  to  conclude  from  what 
has  just  been  written  that  all  you  will  have  to  do  is  to  weed 
out  less  desirable  employers  and  take  your  pick  of  firms. 
Even  if  you  stood  first  throughout  your  high-school  course 
and  came  to  the  city  with  several  medals,  including  a  special 
prize  from  a  business  college,  you  may  have  diflficulty  in 


SECURING  A  POSITION  323 

locating  one  desirable  vacancy.  But  when  you  accept  the 
point  of  view  that  vacancies  need  to  be  sought  for,  there 
arc  at  least  five  ways  in  which  you  can  locate  them  : 

1.  "  Help  WanUd"  advertisements.  The  daily  papers  and 
Sunday  editions  contain  lists  of  openings.  These  sometimes 
afford  you  an  opportunity  to  place  yourself.  Trade  papers 
also  contain  such  lists,  which,  while  not  offering  so  many 
openings,  are  more  valuable  since  they  are  for  the  particu- 
lar work  you  desire.  If  you  want  an  office  position,  for 
instance,  read  the  "  want  ads  "  in  the  daily  papers  and  in 
business  magazines, 

2.  Einployvient  agencies.  Some  agencies  perform  a  real 
service  and  charge  a  reasonable  price.  But  be  sure  that  you 
are  dealing  with  a  reliable  firm,  able  to  do  what  it  claims, 
before  you  pay  for  service  in  advance  of  securing  the  posi- 
tion. Your  name  on  the  books  of  one  or  two  good  agencies 
will  very  likely  prove  to  your  advantage. 

3.  Friends.  Your  friends  may  hear  of  openings.  Let 
them  know  your  needs.  If  you  have  qualifications  of  your 
own  upon  which  to  stand,  friends  will  be  glad  to  help  you 
get  a  start,  and  it  is  not  asking  too  much  of  some  of  them 
to  do  this. 

4.  ''Positions  Wanted''  advertisements.  If  you  are  seri- 
ously in  earnest,  you  will  not  remain  idle  while  waiting 
for  a  vacancy  to  appear.  It  will  cost  but  little  to  place  an 
advertisement  of  your  own  in  the  papers.  In  planning 
this  advertisement,  try  to  write  it  so  that  it  will  bring  re- 
sults. Employers  are  looking  for  efficient  producers.  Would 
this,  for  instance,  which  appeared  in  the  Neiv  York  Times, 
interest  them  t 

Harvard  Graduate  wants  position  with 
future ;  willing  to  start  moderately  and 
prove  himself  with  time ;  have  studied  ac- 
counting; would  prefer  mercantile  house. 
D.  I  78  Times. 


324 


OCCUPATIONS 


Does  this  young  man  know  what  he  wants  to  do  ?  Has 
he  definitely  prepared  himself  for  anything  ?  Does  he  use 
good  English  ?  If  you  were  an  employer,  would  you  send 
for  him  ?  Will  he  be  as  likely  to  get  a  position  as  the 
young  man  who,  though  in  all  probability  much  less  ex- 
pensively trained,  writes  as  follows : 

AN  EDUCATED  young  man,  26, 
with  knowledge  of  bookkeeping  and  office 
requirements,  desires  position ;  good  pen- 
man, industrious,  persevering.  W.,  127 
Powell  St.,  Brooklyn. 

In  preparing  the  copy,  jot  down  a  list  of  your  most  im- 
portant qualifications.  With  prospective  employers  in  mind, 
arrange  these  in  as  clear,  forceful,  and  interesting  a  way  as 
you  can.  And  do  not  stop  with  the  first  attempt.  There 
is  no  merit  in  writing  an  average  advertisement ;  what  you 
want  to  develop  is  the  ability  to  write  one  with  a  positioii- 
gettiug  pull.  Take  your  copy  to  the  newspaper  office  and 
get  one  of  the  clerks  to  help  you  arrange  it  in  display  form. 
This  will  make  it  more  noticeable  and  readable.  If  the  posi- 
tion sought  is  of  importance  you  can  afford  to  present  an 
advertisement  something  like  this  : 

BUYER  WANT.S  POSITION 

Buyer  in  fur  department  large  Chicago 
firm  wants  similar  position  with  New  York 
Dept.  Store.  Knows  fur  business  from 
ground  up;  16  yrs.  experience,  did  $200,- 
000  last  year.  35,  married,  highest  refer- 
ences including  present  employers.  Wants 
good  salary  with  prospects,  but  is  worth 
it  and  willing  to  prove  it.  V.  B.  C,  Dry 
Goods  Ecfliio>nist. 

5.  Estimated  vacancies.  Suppose  that  you,  in  this  case  a 
civil  engineer  seeking  a  position,  see  in  the  morning  paper 
that  the  surveying  for  a  new  trolley  line  is  to  commence  in 


SECURING  A  POSITION  325 

three  weeks.  Does  it  have  any  meaning  for  you  ?  The  quick- 
witted youth  will  without  delay  have  his  application  hurrying 
toward  headquarters.  New  developments  and  reorganizations 
are  recounted  continually  in  the  daily  and  trade  papers. 
They  mean  vacancies,  and  as  such  have  an  interest  for  you. 

In  nearly  all  large  establishments  there  are  changes,  either 
expansions,  resignations,  or  other  readjustments,  going  on 
all  the  time.  Practically  every  concern  with  which  you  are 
well  qualified  to  work  represents  in  this  way  possible  open- 
ings. Keep  your  eye  on  these  companies  and  send  them 
letters  of  application.  There  may  be  no  vacancy  when  the 
letter  is  received,  but  if  the  employment  manager  is  favor- 
ably impressed,  it  will  be  filed  and  a  call  may  come  later  on. 
Do  not  be  afraid  that  this  action  will  give  a  wrong  impres- 
sion of  you.  The  company  seeks  efficient  employees  quite 
as  earnestly  as  you  look  for  a  good  position. 

By  employing  as  many  of  these  plans  as  seems  advisable, 
you  should  surely  locate  some  vacancies.  They  may  not 
appear  in  a  day,  and  some  that  are  found  may  not  be  de- 
sirable ;  but  after  a  time  the  one  sought  will  appear ;  then 
you  can  make  it  yours. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Does  your  local  paper  run  a  "  help  wanted  "  column.''  What  sort 
of  positions  are  usually  offered  ? 

2.  Is  there  an  employment  agency  in  your  town?  What  grade  of 
positions  does  it  attempt  to  fill? 

3.  It  is  said  that  a  young  man  is  known  by  the  company  he  keeps. 
How  can  you  secure  friends  of  the  helpful,  onward-moving,  position- 
giving  kind  ? 

4.  Notice  the  "  positions  wanted "  advertisements  in  your  daily 
paper.  Select  one  that  is  strong,  one  that  is  weak.  Give  reasons  for 
your  selection. 

5.  With  your  life  vocation  in  mind  draw  up  a  want  ad  which  will 
set  forth  strongly  such  qualifications  as  you  now  possess. 

6.  What  should  you  say  to  the  objection  "  I  can't  get  up  a  good  want 
ad  because  I  have  n't  any  strong  qualifications  "  ? 


126 


OCCUPATIONS 


7.  Criticize  these  two  advertisements: 

SALESMAN  —  Desires  position,  can 
give  highest  references  and  is  a  college 
graduate.  K,  no  Se7ttme/. 

CLOTHING  SALESMAN  wants  travel- 
ing position  with  New  York  wholesale  cloth- 
iers. 6  yrs.  in  retail  store,  2  yrs.  in  charge 
of  clothing  dept.  3  yrs.  in  factory,  now  has 
charge  of  salesroom.  32,  married,  depend- 
able, a  live  wire,  wants  part  commission  terms. 
Address  C.  R.  F.  Dry  Goods. 

8.  With  what  concern  do  you  think  there  is  now  an  opening  for  a 
machinist?  a  clerk?  a  traveling  salesman  ?  some  other  workman ?  Why 
do  you  think  these  openings  exist  ? 

Applying  by  letter,  i .  Apply  promptly  zvitJi  a  ivell-ivritten 
letter.  When  you  have  learned  of  a  vacancy,  whatever  the 
source  of  the  information,  move.  If,  for  example,  you  ex- 
pect a  position  through  a  want  advertisement,  read  the  paper 
early,  prepare  your  reply,  and  get  your  application  in  the 
hands  of  the  manager  while  sluggards  are  deciding  whether 
to  try  for  the  place.  Your  promptness  will  please  the  pro- 
spective employer,  since  business  requires  dispatch.  When 
prompt  service  is  especially  demanded  in  a  position,  the  ap- 
plicant is  favored  who  makes  use  of  a  special-delivery  stamp. 

Do  not  move  so  rapidly,  however,  that  your  letter  is 
careless  and  weak.  This  would  destroy  your  chances.  Busi- 
ness men  usually  prefer  to  weed  out  applicants  by  letter, 
only  the  few  desirable  candidates  being  called  for  an  inter- 
view. Consequently,  the  foundation  stone  in  position-getting 
is  ability  to  write  a  first-class  letter.  Few  have  this  ability. 
Take  the  fifty  letters  in  response  to  the  "  office  clerk  wanted  " 
advertisement ;  most  are  fit  only  for  the  wastebasket.  If  yours 
is  unusually  good  —  and  you  can  learn  to  make  it  so  —  you 
become  a  favored  man,  marked  for  an  interview. 

2.  The  essentials  of  a  foreeful  letter.  The  subject  of  let- 
ter writing  is  too  broad  to  be  discussed  in  detail  here,  and 


SECURING  A  POSITION  327 

must  be  left  to  special  books,  several  excellent  ones  being 
listed  in  the  Readings  and  References  at  the  end  of  the 
chapter.  However,  of  the  really  important  matters  there 
are  only  a  few,  and  these  with  persistent  practice  you  can 
learn  to  observe. 

3.  Attention  to  the  nieehanies  of  a  letter.  This  includes 
such  plain  requirements  as  good  spelling,  proper  punctua- 
tion, and  paragraphing.  Look  at  your  letter  also  from  the 
standpoint  of  art.  Does  it  show  ink  spots,  careless  erasures, 
words  crossed  out,  or  crooked  margins }  Or  does  it  stand 
out  neatly,  with  a  satisfying  balance  to  the  page }  Use 
first-class,  heavy  white  paper,  full-sized  sheets,  and  number 
all  pages  after  the  first. 

To  have  your  letter  typewritten  is  usually  the  best  plan  ; 
if  you  do  not  operate  a  machine  well,  it  may  pay  you  to 
get  a  public  stenographer  to  prepare  your  letter.  For  some 
positions,  however,  where  good  handwriting  is  important, 
it  might  be  well  not  to  send  a  typewritten  letter.  If  you 
plan  to  try  for  any  such  position,  it  would  pay  you  to  de- 
velop your  penmanship.  "  One  of  the  surprising  features 
we  have  encountered,"  writes  the  manager  of  the  National 
Employment  Exchange,  ""  is  the  very  poor  penmanship  of 
both  men  and  women  applying  for  clerical  positions." 

Fold  your  letter  with  care,  and  make  a  neat-appearing 
packet  which  can  be  opened  easily.  Have  the  envelope 
harmonize  with  the  letter  both  as  to  quality  and  color  of 
paper  and  penmanship  or  typewriting.  In  the  address  be 
sure  that  your  prospective  employer's  name  is  spelled  prop- 
erly ;  look  at  the  advertisement,  his  letterhead,  or  consult 
the  telephone  directory.  Space  the  address  so  that  the 
envelope  presents  a  neat  appearance. 

While  these  may  seem  useless  details,  there  are  but 
few  who  can  send  a  letter  meeting  these  requirements.  If 
you  stand  among  these  few,  you  may  win  the  first  touch- 
down and  be  nearer  the  goal. 


328  OCCUPATIONS 

4.  Cultivate  a  good  style.  Your  letter  should  show  an 
accurate  knowledge  of  English  grammar  and  some  ability 
to  apply  the  fundamental  principles  of  English  composition, 
such  as  unity,  coherence,  emphasis.  When  in  doubt,  make 
your  sentences  short  and  as  straightforward  as  possible. 
A  common-sense,  busy  man  will  read  your  letter  of  appli- 
cation. Write  to  him  in  energetic,  simple  English,  the  best 
you  can  command. 

5.  Pulling  qualities  of  your  letter.  Shall  you  start  your 
letter  with  "  I  "  and  make  it  a  series  of  "  I's  "  down  the 
page  because  you  think  the  man  is  interested  in  yoii  t 
What  the  prospective  employer  wants  is  a  certain  amount 
of  work  done,  and  he  is  interested  in  you  primarily  as  a 
means  toward  that  end.  See  then  that  his  ]3oint  of  view 
colors  your  entire  letter. 

To  write  a  letter  that  pulls,  means,  for  one  thing,  that 
you  must  study  his  advertisement,  his  letter,  and  everything 
that  will  give  you  a  better  idea  of  what  he  wants.  Does  his 
advertisement  state: 

WANTED,  in  large  banking  house, 
young  man  as  assistant  to  bookkeeper. 
Experience  unnecessary,  but  must  be  ab- 
solutely dependable,  no  bad  habits,  good 
penman.  520  Herald,  Downtown. 

—  then  why  give  a  long  discussion  of  how  you  won  a  prize 
in  Greek  and  how  you  were  employed  for  two  years  as  assist- 
ant athletic  director  in  the  high  school,  and  close  your  letter 
with  "  Hoping  to  be  favored  with  the  position".?  Like  most 
writers  you  have  not  answered  his  advertisement.  Why  not 
be  exceptional  and  answer  every  point  he  makes  } 

If  your  penmanship  is  a  wretched  scrawl,  if  you  are  seen 
with  questionable  companions,  and  if  you  like  to  do  as  you 
please  instead  of  what  you  are  told,  this  position  is  probably 
not  for  you.  Only  an  accident  would  enable  you  to  receive 
it,  and  if  you  did,  you  would  soon  be  discharged.    But  if  }-ou 


SECURING  A  POSITION  329 

have  won  a  prize  in  penmanship,  if  you  can  truthfully  say 
you  use  neither  tobacco  nor  liquor  and  do  not  have  any 
other  bad  habits,  and  if  you  feel  that  an  employer  could 
always  depend  on  you,  tell  him  all  these  things.  Write  the 
letter  in  your  best  penmanship,  or  typewrite  it,  inclosing  a 
sample  of  your  writing,  and  close  your  application  with  some 
such  sentences  as  "This  position  is  one  which  interests  me 
very  much,  and  I  believe  you  would  be  pleased  with  my 
work.  May  I  not  call  upon  you  soon  for  an  interview .?  " 
Also,  ask  your  teacher  or  pastor  or  Y.M.C.A.  secretary  to 
write  what  he  knows  about  your  character  and  ability. 

When  you  have  before  you  as  clearly  as  possible  all  the 
requirements,  draw  up  a  list  of  your  qiLalijications  related  to 
this  position.  Ask  yourself  a  series  of  searching  questions. 
What  is  there  about  me  that  this  employer  would  like .'' 
What  experience  have  I  had  which  proves  my  ability  .'*  Am 
I  dependable,  speedy,  accurate,  and  willing  to  work  hard .-' 
Am  I  increasing  my  ability  all  the  time .?  Can  I  do  this 
work  particularly  well  ?  Would  my  employer  find  in  me 
a  good  investment .'' 

Such  questions  will  probably  furnish  the  materials  for  a 
good  letter.  Strengthen  your  statement  of  these  qualifica- 
tions by  telling  how  you  read  the  latest  trade  journals,  if 
you  really  read  them,  since  employers  like  to  have  men  who 
are  progressive  and  interested  in  their  vocations.  Bring 
forward  any  successful  experience  which  will  indicate  likeli- 
hood of  similar  success  in  this  position.  Make  your  claims 
stronger  by  giving  references  or  by  having  persons  quali- 
fied to  do  so  write  letters  recommending  you.  Prove  your 
ability,  if  possible,  by  submitting  some  of  your  previous 
work.  A  young  man,  for  instance,  in  applying  for  the 
position  of  assistant  bookkeeper  in  a  bank  could  increase 
his  chances  by  laying  before  the  president  or  cashier  a 
neatly  kept  set  of  books,  the  result  of  his  high-school 
course  in  bookkeeping. 


330  OCCUPATIONS 

6.  Lcngtii  of  the  letter.  Write  a  long  letter  if  necessary. 
We  constantly  hear  that  "business  men  are  busy;  be  brief." 
Business  men  are  busy,  but  they  are  also  shrewd  buyers,  and 
they  are  going  to  engage  no  young  man  on  a  guess.  Lay 
your  strong  qualifications  before  your  prospective  employer 
even  if  it  takes  several  pages.  How  otherwise  can  he  tell 
whether  he  wants  you  or  not  ?  If  you  have  no  extended 
list  of  qualifications  and  are  applying  for  a  humble  position, 
there  is  no  merit  in  sending  a  letter  needlessly  long.  But 
in  every  case  set  forth  your  qualifications  adequately  and 
see  that  there  is  meaning  in  every  word. 

7.  Positiveness  of  the  letter.  Make  your  letter  positive. 
Do  not  in  this  first  letter  ask  what  the  salary  is,  how  long 
the  hours  are,  or  if  the  work  is  hard.  If  this  man  suspects 
that  you  are  looking  for  an  easy  job,  that  you  will  be  a  drag 
on  his  business,  your  letter  will  go  into  the  wastebasket. 
Do  not  tell  what  you  cannot  do,  how  you  are  out  of  a  job, 
nor  express  doubt  as  to  your  ability  to  do  this  work  or  sus- 
picion as  to  whether  the  company  is  first-class.  Such  things 
are  negative ;  they  get  you  nowhere.  Admit  }our  inexperi- 
ence frankly,  do  not  pretend  to  know  it  all,  but  urge  strongly 
your  interest  in  the  work,  your  application,  perseverance,  and 
willingness  to  please.    '^J'ry  to  arrange  for  an  interview. 

All  this  may  seem  to  be  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  but  a 
good  letter  requires  considerable  effort.  That  is  why  most 
letters  of  application  are  worthless.  By  all  means  draw  up 
a  high-grade  letter  the  first  time  you  apply,  even  if  it  does 
mean  hard  work.  Keep  a  copy  of  it,  and  for  the  next  posi- 
tion you  apply  for  modify  this  letter  to  suit  the  case.  If 
the  position  is  similar,  the  same  letter  may  be  sent,  the  date 
and  address  only  being  changed.  In  this  way  making 
applications  will  become  easier,  and  can  be  carried  on 
more  extensively  until  a  position  has  been  secured. 

H.  Persistence  in  applying.  Do  not  be  unduly  anxious 
over  results  nor  discouraged  if  nothing  seems  to  develop. 


SECURING  A  POSITION  331 

Remember  that  there  are  many  other  apphcants ;  do  not  be 
cast  down  if  someone  else  is  elected.  Your  prospective  em- 
ployer may  have  done  badly  by  not  selecting  you.  And  the 
best  way  to  prove  this  to  your  satisfaction  is  by  securing 
eventually  a  better  position  than  he  had  to  offer.  Keep  send- 
ing out  applications.  Let  the  companies  for  whom  you  would 
like  to  work  know  that  there  is  such  a  person  even  though 
it  should  require  several  letters  to  do  it.  Has  some  mail- 
order house  secured  your  name  and  address .''  Think  of  all 
the  letters  they  send  you,  and  they  also  write  to  thousands 
of  other  people  at  the  same  time.  Work  up  a  high-grade 
application,  select  with  discrimination  a  list  of  firms,  send 
letters  to  each  of  them,  and  in  good  time  a  position  is 
certain  to  be  yours. 

EXERCISES 

1.  What  are  your  most  serious  faults  in  the  "  mechanics  "  of  a  letter? 
How  can  you  remedy  these  ? 

2.  Look  at  the  letter  you  have  just  written  to  some  friend.  What 
are  its  shortcomings  from  the  viewpoint  of  "mechanics".''  of  style.'' 
How  can  you  improve  it  .^ 

3.  In  order  to  write  a  pulling  letter  what  is  the  essential  point  of 
view?    How  can  you  get  this  point  of  view? 

4.  With  some  definite  position  in  mind,  draw  up  your  best  application 
letter. 

5.  Make  a  list  of  the  qualities  found  in  a  high-grade  letter  of  appli- 
cation. Which  of  these  does  your  letter  meet?  Which  does  it  fail  to 
satisfy  ?    How  can  you  improve  it  ? 

Applying  in  person.  Employers  will  want  to  see  you. 
That  your  letter  has  pleased  them  is  evident  when  they  ask 
you  to  call,  but  there  are  many  qualifications  and  deficien- 
cies which  no  letter  will  indicate.  If  the  position  is  of  any  im- 
portance the  personal  interview  is  usually  required.  Whether 
this  will  be  to  your  advantage  depends  somewhat  upon  your 
temperament.  If  you  write  well,  but  are  timid,  distrustful  of 
yourself,  and  have  strong  qualities  which  can  be  appreciated 


332  OCCUPATIONS 

only  upon  long  acquaintance,  it  may  be  your  best  plan  of 
attack  to  dispatch  a  letter  of  application  inclosing  references 
and  followed  by  recommendations  of  people  who  know  you. 
Yet  most  employers  are  able  in  a  personal  interview  to  esti- 
mate a  young  man  accurately,  and  your  strong  qualifica- 
tions for  their  work  are  not  likely  to  escape  detection.  Your 
chances  for  appointment  through  a  personal  interview  will 
be  increased,  we  believe,  by  giving  due  consideration  to  the 
following  details  : 

1.  Preparation  for  the  inte7\'ieiv.  Study  the  position  with 
care,  its  requirements  and  your  ability  to  meet  them.  Study 
the  concern  as  w'ell  —  its  histor)',  reputation,  and  special 
demands.  Study  especially,  if  possible,  the  particular  man 
whom  you  are  to  meet  —  his  methods,  peculiarities,  preju- 
dices, and  the  qualities  he  esteems  most  highly  in  a  man. 
His  favorable  word  means  a  position  for  you.  Draw  up  a 
campaign  that  will  get  this  word. 

Get  a  good  night's  sleep  ;  feel  fit.  Be  particularly  careful 
about  your  personal  appearance.  I5e  immaculately  clean  and 
simply  but  well  dressed.  If  you  show  carelessness  or  poor 
judgment  in  personal  matters,  men  will  not  be  likely  to 
intrust  you  with  their  business  affairs. 

2.  C?iltivation  of  attractive  qualities.  Be  on  time.  But 
do  not  overdo  this  and  have  to  wait  half  an  hour;  this 
would  prove  you  to  be  unbusinesslike.  W'licn  )-our  turn 
comes,  w^alk  forward  with  a  firm  step.  Cultivate  a  bearing 
which  shows  that  you  possess  self-respect ;  for  if  you  respect 
yourself,  others  will  likewise  respect  you.  Naturally,  the 
smell  of  liquor  on  your  breath  would  be  fatal.  Leaving  to 
others  all  discussion  of  the  morals  involved,  five  out  of  ever)' 
six  business  men,  according  to  the  report  of  the  United 
States  Commission  of  Labor,  have  no  room  for  occasional 
tipplers  when  total  abstainers  can  be  had.  Cigarette  stains 
and  teeth  discolored  by  tobacco  will  also  disqualify  you  with 
most  employers. 


SECURING  A  POSITION  333 

Courtesy  is  most  important ;  good  manners  have  pushed 
many  men  higher.  Remove  your  hat  when  entering  the 
office,  do  not  sprawl  in  the  chair,  stand  up  straight,  and 
assume  a  confident  and  open  appearance.  You  need  not 
be  a  brilliant  conversationalist,  but  you  should  learn  to  use 
the  English  language  in  a  correct,  straightforward  way. 

These  desirable  qualities  will  help.  While  some  are 
essential,  all  are  worth  developing.  This,  of  course,  cannot 
be  done  in  a  day.  Hence  you  should  not  wait  until  the 
notice  from  the  big  company  to  appear  before  the  president 
at  nine  o'clock  to-morrow  lies  open  in  your  hand  ;  for  such 
a  moment,  or  one  very  much  like  it,  is  bound  to  come  sev- 
eral times  in  the  life  of  every  ambitious  young  man.  It  is 
wise  to  prepare  for  it  now. 

3.  The  emphasis  of  position-getting  qualities.  As  the 
president  of  a  giant  trust  puts  it,  "  We  want  men  who  are 
continually  thinking,  planning,  striving  for  us."  Would 
he  be  impressed  by  an  account  of  how  you  did  not  want 
to  get  into  work,  but  were  obliged  to  do  something }  that 
you  had  no  experience,  doubted  if  you  would  be  able  to 
please  him,  and  hoped  the  foreman  would  not  be  cross .-' 
how  the  last  employer  was  unappreciative,  bad  tempered, 
disliked  by  all  his  workmen,  and  finally  discharged  you  ? 
that  you  came  here  because  you  had  not  struck  anything 
else,  had  heard  that  he  paid  good  salaries,  and  the  work 
was  easy  ? 

An  interview  with  an  executive  should  be  a  clear  indica- 
tion that  you  are  interested  in  zvork,  particularly  in  his 
work.  He  is  interested  in  that,  and  if  you  are  not,  you 
should  not  take  his  time.  Do  not  publish  the  fact  that  you 
are  experienced,  nor  lay  claim  to  qualifications  that  you  do 
not  possess,  for  some  cross-questioning  later  on  may  badly 
discredit  you  and  render  worthless,  as  well,  your  claims  of 
reliability.  Think  over  everything  that  you  have  done  which 
may  justly  be  regarded  as  experience  in  this  work.    Most 


334  OCCUPATIONS 

young  men  have  more  practical  experience  than  will  at  first 
occur  to  them.  If  confronted  with  the  fact  that  you  are 
inexperienced,  admit  it ;  say  you  recognize  that  this  is  where 
you  are  weak.  Look  the  employer  pleasantly  but  firmly  in 
the  eye  and  say  somewhat  as  follows  :  ' '  Everybody  has  to 
begin  sometime.  But  if  you  will  let  me  try,  I  will  take  hold 
and  do  my  very  best.  And  I  can  promise  that  }'ou  won't 
be  bothered  by  my  inexperience  very  long."  Executives 
who  have  climbed  the  ladder  are  apt  to  have  a  soft  spot 
in  their  hearts  for  earnest  young  men.  This  man  may 
recall  having  been  once  in  your  place  himself. 

Be  careful  of  what  you  say  of  former  employers.  You 
should  not  have  left  them  without  good  reasons,  and  if  so, 
giving  these  reasons  in  a  straightforward  way  is  desirable. 
If  you  speak  slightingly  of  them,  the  man  before  you  will 
suspect  that  similar  remarks  will  later  on  be  made  about 
him,  and  he  will  thus  come  to  doubt  that  you  possess  proper 
loyalty.  If  you  failed  to  make  good  through  no  fault  of  your 
own,  give  the  facts.  If  you  were  discharged  with  good  cause, 
admit  your  mistake  ;  say  that  you  have  learned  your  lesson 
and  are  more  valuable  because  of  this  unfortunate  experi- 
ence. Do  not  shift  uneasily  in  your  chair  and  appear  over- 
cautious when  your  former  record  is  under  question.  The 
best  way  to  prevent  this  is  to  have  your  record  of  such 
nature  that  you  are  eager  to  have  it  investigated.  Begin  in 
your  very  first  position  to  lay  the  foundation  solid.  Prepare 
to  do  this  by  being  a  reliable  student  in  high  school. 

Tell  no  hard-luck  stories,  and  remember  also  that  asking 
a  man  for  a  position  is  not  begging.  You  stand  ready  to 
do  things ;  it  is  to  his  interests  to  hire  such  a  young  man. 
Have  a  deep-rooted  faith  in  yourself,  and  thus  impress  him 
with  your  ability,  your  earnestness,  and  your  willingness  to 
serve  him  well.  He  will  then  feel  that  adding  you  to  his 
force  of  employees  is  a  wise  move,  and  that  he  cannot 
afford  to  let  such  a  young  man  slip  through  his  fingers. 


SECURING  A  POSITION  335 

4.  Cli)ichiug  the  position.  If  at  the  close  of  the  inter- 
view it  is  plain  that  no  decision  is  to  be  reached  until  after 
others  have  been  seen,  do  not  hang  on  and  on.  Such  per- 
sistence is  no  virtue,  but  cuts  down  your  chances.  Take  a 
businesslike  leave.  If  any  opening  for  a  letter  is  given, 
—  such  as  requests  for  additional  samples  of  your  work, 
references,  questions,  etc.,  —  draw  up  a  careful  statement 
of  this  information  and  weave  it  into  a  letter  which  will, 
in  the  light  of  all  the  interview  has  taught  you,  set  forth 
strongly  your  qualifications  for  the  position.  You  are  in 
this  way  once  more  impressed  upon  the  employer's  atten- 
tion and  are  able  to  emphasize  your  serious  interest  in  the 
position  he  offers. 

In  case  he  seems  much  interested  in  you,  if  you  can 
touch  upon  the  fact  that  he  has  your  address  and  can  leave 
him  with  the  idea  that  you  have  great  confidence  in  being 
well  placed  in  a  few  days,  it  will  increase  your  chances  of 
being  placed  with  him. 

Should  he  seem  practically  decided,  yet  loath  to  make 
the  engagement  definite,  suggest,  as  you  are  about  to  leave, 
"  I  can  call  upon  you  Monday  to  learn  your  decision."  His 
aversion  to  meeting  you  Monday  with  a  refusal  will  weigh 
in  your  favor. 

However,  should  you  decide  that  your  application  has 
been  so  satisfactory  that  the  direct  question  may  be  put,  you 
might  ask,  "  If  my  record,  which  you  will  get  from  these 
references,  shows  nothing  against  me,  will  you  give  me 
the  position }  "  But  should  the  employer  already  appear 
satisfied,  if  he  says,  "  I  guess  you  are  the  one  we  want," 
give  him  no  chance  to  meet  some  other  candidate  and  per- 
haps change  his  opinion.  Say  "  Thank  you  very  much.  I 
am  ready  to  commence  work  the  day  you  set." 


336  OCCUPATIONS 

EXERCISES 

1.  In  your  preparation  for  an  interview  with  some  employer,  in 
which  points  do  you  now  feel  confident?  Which  points  need  attention? 

2.  Observe  the  successful  young  men  of  your  town,  the  ones  who 
hold  positions  you  would  like.    What  strong  qualities  do  they  show? 

3.  Are  you  inclined  to  be  an  optimist  or  a  pessimist?  Which  one 
gets  positions  more  readily? 

4.  Imagine  your  prospective  employer  seated  in  a  corner  of  your 
room.  Practice  how  to  enter,  how  to  approach  him,  what  to  say,  how  to 
clinch  the  position,  and  how  to  leave. 

5.  What  negative  qualities  are  you  liable  to  show?  What  positive 
qualities  have  you  to  develop  by  means  of  which  the  negative  ones  will 
be  crowded  out  ? 

6.  Have  you  ever  observed  a  first-class  salesman?  What  points  have 
you  learned  from  him  which  will  help  you  in  getting  a  position? 

After  securing  the  position.  The  position  secured,  it  may 
seem  that  all  is  done.  But  it  is  at  this  point  that  many 
young  men  show  themselves  unbusinesslike  and  selfish.  It 
is  good  business  policy,  for  one  thing,  to  acknowledge  the 
offer  which  reaches  you  through  the  mails.  Assure  the  firm 
that  you  appreciate  being  cliosen,  and  that  you  will  put  forth 
every  effort  to  succeed.  Should  it  be  a  refusal  instead,  it  is 
well  to  reply,  for  everybody  respects  a  good  loser,  and  this 
company  may  have  vacancies  to  fill  later  on. 

If  two  positions  are  tendered,  write  a  respectful  letter 
to  the  employer  refused.  He  has  complimented  you  by 
this  selection.  It  would  show  a  mean  nature  should  you  snub 
him  as  soon  as  you  can  do  better  elsewhere.  In  case  the 
salary  in  the  position  offered  you  appears  much  too  low,  do 
not  refer  to  it  contemptuously,  but  write  that  with  your  quali- 
fications, you  do  not  feel  that  you  would  be  just  to  )ourself 
in  accepting. 

Let  the  friends  whose  names  you  gave  as  references 
know  the  outcome  of  your  application,  and  assure  them 
you  appreciate  their  efforts.    If  tliis   cannot  be   done  with 


SECURING  A  POSITION  337 

sincerity,  it  indicates  a  selfish  nature  which  deserves  no 
help.  Most  teachers,  friends,  and  former  employers  take  an 
interest  in  a  young  man  who  is  climbing  upward,  and  are 
glad  to  help  him  along.  This  is  a  real  service  they  per- 
form, and  you  should  let  them  know  that  you  so  regard  it. 

READmOS  AND  REFERENCES 

Fowler,  N.  C.     How  to  Get  and  Keep  a  Job.     Moffat,  Yard  and 

Company.     New  York,  1907.    $1.25. 
Hall,  S.  R.    How  to  Get  a  Position  and  How  to  Keep  It.    Funk  and 

Wagnalls  Company.    New  York,  I90<S.    50  cents. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD 

Folks  who  never  do  any  more  than  they  get  paid  for,  never  get  paid 
for  any  more  than  they  do.  —  Elbert  Hubbard 

The  secret  of  success  in  life  is  for  a  man  to  be  ready  for  his  oppor- 
tunity when  it  comes.  —  Disraeli 

Seest  thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  business  ?  He  shall  stand  before 
kings.  —  Solomon 

Now  that  you  have  your  position,  fill  it,  outgrow  it,  and 
press  onward  to  larger  tasks.  You  are  living  in  the  great 
New  W'orld,  where  men  are  expected  to  do  great  things. 
With  earnest  conviction  our  forefathers  set  about  subduing 
this  vast  continent.  With  sturdy  zeal  our  fathers  pioneered 
the  West,  and  with  tremendous  speed  we  are  turning  the 
resources  of  our  inheritance  into  the  service  of  all  men. 
A  share  of  this  work  is  for  you.  How  can  you  best 
perform  it  ? 

Be  energetic ;  keep  fit  for  work.  It  is  very  homely  advice 
to  say,  Eat  plain  wholesome  food  ;  if  your  work  is  sedentary, 
exercise  each  day ;  see  that  workroom  and  bedroom  are 
kept  well  ventilated  ;  do  not  tax  your  stomach  with  liquor  or 
other  stimulants,  or  confectionery  between  meals  ;  and  make 
it  a  practice  to  keep  regular  hours  and  get  a  good  sleep 
every  night.  Few  things  are  more  neglected.  In  this  respect 
it  is  as  if  young  men  were  content  to  carry  the  ball  and 
chain,  to  be  physically  bound  when  they  might  be  free. 

These  things  are  fundamental  and  must  be  heeded.  To 
do  work  requires  energy.  A  locomotive  without  steam  can- 
not pull  a  car.    And  human  energy  at  bottom  is  a  product  of 

338 


EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD  339 

food  and  air.  Therefore,  if  the  body  receives  sufficient  nour- 
ishment and  is  able  to  transform  it  as  an  efficient  organ- 
ism should,  the  person  will  have  energy  in  abundance.  This 
is  needed  for  success  to-day.  To  plow  through  the  massive 
tasks  and  to  force  oneself  ever  forward  requires  energy. 
Do  not  overlook  these  plain  simple  matters  ;  do  not  ignore 
your  health. 

Be  efficient ;  let  every  effort  produce  much.  Scientific 
management  is  being  everywhere  introduced.  The  efficiency 
expert  appointed  by  the  governor  receives  more  salary  than 
his  Excellency.  In  practically  every  phase  of  business,  effi- 
ciency, which  means  adequate  results,  is  demanded  of  all 
workers.  Being  efficient  concerns  first  of  all  such  matter- 
of-fact  duties  as  getting  to  the  office  on  time.  "  Let  's 
take  the  instant  by  the  forward  top,"  says  Shakespeare. 
"  How  I  appreciate  the  boy  who  is  always  on  time,"  says 
the  president  of  the  New  York  Central.  Efficiency  de- 
mands that  you  keep  your  files  and  desk  well  arranged, 
follow  directions  without  asking  continually  how  things  are 
to  be  done,  waste  no  paper  or  other  office  supplies,  and 
keep  confidential  what  you  hear  of  your  employer's  busi- 
ness. It  demands  of  you,  also,  to  bear  in  mind  that  office 
hours  are  for  business,  not  for  writing  private  letters,  read- 
ing newspapers,  or  idle  chatting.  Wages  are  paid  for  work. 
See  to  it  that  you  earn  yours.  More  than  that,  efficiency 
demands  that  you  give  good  measure  in  the  results  for 
which  you  are  paid. 

Be  alert ;  develop  initiative.  Employers  want  men  who 
think  and  do  things,  not  those  who  wait  to  be  told  to  do 
them.  Have  the  courage  to  start  out  on  a  new  line  when- 
ever the  old  has  proved  inadequate.  "One  false  axiom 
you  will  often  hear,"  says  Andrew  Carnegie,  "which  I 
wish  to  guard  you  against :  '  Obey  orders  if  you  break 
owners.'  Don't  you  do  it.  This  is  no  rule  for  you  to  follow. 
Always  break  orders  to   save  owners.    There  never  was  a 


340  OCCUPATIONS 

great  character  who  did  not  sometimes  smash  the  routine 
regulations  and  make  new  ones  for  himself.  The  rule  is 
only  suitable  for  such  as  have  no  aspirations,  and  you  have 
not  forgotten  that  you  are  destined  to  be  owners  and  to 
make  orders  and  break  orders.  Do  not  hesitate  to  do  it 
whenever  you  are  sure  the  interests  of  your  employer  will 
be  thereby  promoted  and  when  you  are  so  sure  of  the  result 
that  you  are  willing  to  take  the  responsibility. 

"  The  rising  man  must  do  something  exceptional,  and 
beyond  the  range  of  his  special  department.  He  must 
attract  attention.  A  shipping  clerk,  he  may  do  so  by  dis- 
covering in  an  invoice  an  error  with  which  he  has  nothing 
to  do,  and  which  has  escaped  the  attention  of  the  proper 
party.  If  a  weighing  clerk,  he  may  save  for  the  firm  by 
doubting  the  adjustment  of  the  scales  and  having  them 
corrected,  even  if  this  be  the  province  of  the  master  me- 
chanic. Even  if  a  messenger  boy,  he  can  lay  the  seed  of 
promotion  by  going  beyond  the  letter  of  his  instructions  in 
order  to  secure  the  desired  reply." 

The  man  of  initiative  is  the  exceptional  employee.  He 
does  not  say,  "  I  am  not  paid  to  do  that,"  and  "the  best 
thing  about  this  job  is  six  o'clock  and  pay  day."  He  is  the 
man  employers  count  as  a  rare  find,  the  live  subordinate 
who  dares  to  go  forward. 

Be  progressive ;  let  each  day,  each  position,  be  a  step- 
ping stone.  This  does  not  mean  idle  dreaming  of  a  $5000 
position  when  you  now  get  ^18  a  week.  Are  you  worth 
this  ^18?  If  not,  you  should  first  fill  and  then  outgrow 
your  present  position.  It  does  not  mean  trying  one  posi- 
tion after  another.  '"  This  one  thing  I  do,"  said  Saint  Paul. 
"The  longer  I  live,"  says  Powell  Buxton,  "the  more  deeply 
am  I  convinced  that  that  which  makes  the  difference  between 
one  man  and  another  —  between  the  weak  and  the  power- 
ful, the  great  and  the  insignificant  —  is  energy,  invincible 
determination,  a  purpose  once  formed,  then  death  or  victory." 


EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD  341 

Being  progressive  means  to  turn  out  to-day  more  work 
and  better  work  than  yesterday.  That  is  why  some  men  are 
paid  $40  and  $50  a  week,  and  are  worth  it.  Watch  the 
big  executive  as  he  sits  at  his  desk.  No  fretting,  fuming, 
hurr}'ing,  but  see  the  rapidity  with  which  he  dispatches 
one  task  after  another.  You  can  learn  to  work  that  way, 
and  you  may  perhaps  even  fit  yourself  to  hold  a  position 
like  his. 

You  should  prepare  yourself  to  do  something  that  the 
world  needs  so  badly  that  it  will  pay  good  wages  for  it. 
Learn  to  do  this  thing  well,  even  if  its  beginning  is  sweep- 
ing out  an  office  and  making  yourself  generally  useful. 
Does  the  great  world  need  such  humble  work  as  this  ? 
We  all  know  that  such  work  is  vitally  necessary.  The  boy 
who  places  a  weight  on  the  papers  near  the  window,  throws 
a  cover  over  the  typewriter  which  the  stenographer  has  left, 
supplies  the  telephone  callers  with  the  information  that 
though  the  employer  is  now  out  to  lunch  he  may  be  e.xpected 
back  by  1.30,  and  turns  off  the  dictophone  which  someone 
has  left  running  —  this  boy,  by  doing  just  such  things, 
aids  a  large  concern  to  do  business  and  makes  his  efforts 
of  great  value  to  his  employers.  There  is  no  need  to  wait 
for  some  big  job  before  you  recognize  the  call  to  labor. 
Take  hold,  and  if  you  are  obliged  to  begin  in  a  humble 
capacity,  you  are  not  obliged  to  remain  there. 

You  mav  decide  sooner  than  your  employer  does,  how- 
ever, that  your  efforts  entitle  you  to  a  better  position.  What 
is  to  be  done  ?  Great  business  kings  often  advise  young 
men,  "  Never  ask  for  an  increase  in  salary,"  and  our  grand- 
mothers likewise  taught  us,  (f"  Modesty  secures  its  own  re- 
ward.^'' But  let  us  do  our  own  thinking  here.  While  some 
employers  look  over  their  pay  rolls  every  fortnight  searchr 
ing  for  someone  to  promote,  and  are  ready  to  give  the 
salary'  increase  whenever  it  is  deserved,  other  emplo)'ers 
would  sooner  have  a  tooth  pulled  than  mention  promotion 


342  OCCUPATIONS 

and  arc  only  to  be  reached  by  a  definite  request.  For 
which   class   do   you   work  ? 

Before  asking  for  an  increase  put  this  question  to  your- 
self, Am  I  worth  it  ?  Do  not  claim  that  more  salary  is 
due  because  you  have  been  there  a  long  while.  Bring 
forward  some  definite  reasons.  If  you  have  none,  go  back 
and  develop  some.  Are  you  a  salesman  .■*  What  do  your 
sales-records  show  ?  Are  you  a  bu}'er  .?  How  much  did  you 
save  the  company  on  that  big  deal  you  put  through .?  Are 
you  an  accurate  and  speedy  worker .?  How  few  mistakes 
have  you  made  compared  to  the  usual  worker }  How  many 
average  persons  were  formerly  required  to  fill  the  place 
you  now  occupy  ?  If  you  can  convince  yourself  thoroughl}- 
and  honestly,  then  you  are  ready  to  have  a  talk  with  the 
employer.  You  will  not  feel  right  until  you  put  the  matter 
up  to  him  in  a  frank,  good-humored  but  serious  way.  Be 
persistent  if  }ou  feel  fully  justified,  and  do  not  be  put  off 
wdth  future  promises.  The  chances  are  that  your  interests 
will  not  be  hurt  in  the  least,  and  that  if  your  employer  has 
not  noticed  your  good  efforts,  he  will  now  begin  to  do  so  ; 
and  thus  you  and  he  will  enter  into  a  closer  partnership 
for  more  work  done  and  better  wages  paid.  Choose  the 
kind  of  employer  and  the  kind  of  work  where  such  a 
course   is   possible. 

Keep  enthusiastic ;  advancement  belongs  to  the  optimist. 
The  road  to  success  is  by  no  means  easy  to  travel.  Hard, 
persistent  effort  alone  will  conquer.  "  I  have  been  employed 
for  a  number  of  years  in  railroad  work,"  writes  Mr.  James 
Fitzsimons,  general  manager  of  the  Quebec,  Montreal,  and 
Southern  Railway  Company,  "and  for  a  great  many  of 
them  in  a  very  minor  position,  which  at  times  became 
rather  irksome,  and  tlic  duties  somewhat  unpleasant,  so 
much  so  that  it  was  with  difficulty  that  I  stayed  where  I 
was."     Read   between  the   lines   of    this   letter.    Is   it   not 


EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD          343 

inspiring   to   find   a   man   who   has    reached   the    top    after 
years  of  disagreeable  work  ? 

You  will  meet  discouragement,  and  occasionally  will  be 
cast  down  hard.  This  need  not  alarm  you,  as  it  is  to  be 
expected.  If  men  could  advance  without  effort,  would  not 
the  beggar  be  a  millionaire  and  every  small  politician  the 
president  of  the  United  States }  Demonstrate  your  right  to 
a  high  position  by  the  way  you  treat  obstacles.  When  dis- 
couragement comes,  smile.  Fall  in  love  with  your  daily 
work.  It  has  some  drawbacks,  of  course,  but  perfect  posi- 
tions are  not  to  be  found.  Do  not  have  your  hopes  so 
fastened  on  an  impossible  position  that  life  becomes  sour. 
If  you  make  the  best  of  a  small  position,  it  is  better  than 
making  a  failure  of  a  bigger  one. 

"  Let  a  young  man  be  thoroughly  fitted  for  the  business 
position  he  occupies,"  says  Edward  Bok,  editor  of  the  Ladies' 
Home  Journal,  "alert  to  every  opportunity,  and  embracing 
it  to  its  fullest  possibility,  with  his  methods  fixed  on  honor- 
able principles,  and  he  is  a  successful  man.  It  does  not 
matter  whether  he  makes  a  thousand  dollars  or  a  hundred 
thousand  dollars.  He  makes  a  success  of  his  particular  posi- 
tion. He  carries  to  a  successful  termination  that  which  it 
has  been  given  him  to  do,  be  that  great  or  small.  If  the 
work  he  does,  and  does  well,  is  up  to  his  limitations  he  is 
a  success.  If  he  does  not  work  up  to  his  capacity,  then  he 
fails,  just  as  he  fails,  too,  if  he  attempts  to  go  beyond  his 
mental  or  physical  limit.  Success  is  simiply  doing  anything 
to  the  utmost  of  one's  ability — making  as  much  of  one's 
position  as  it  is  possible  to  make." 

Being  gloomy  will  not  help  you  in  either  small  or  large 
positions.  (Bitter  thoughts,  angry  words,  melancholy  pic- 
tures, generate  poisons  in  the  blood  which  will  keep  you  back?) 
It  is  enthusiasm  which  gives  the  forward  push,  makes  the 
dry  task  interesting,  gives  new  meaning  to  humble  duties, 


344  OCCUPATIONS 

and  bathes  the  world  in  purple  light.  "The  mintage  of 
wisdom  is  to  know  that  rest  is  rust,  and  that  real  life  is  in 
love,  laughter  and  works."  Keep  optimistic,  forward  m.ov- 
ing,  enthusiastic.  Be  like  the  sun  which  never  sees  the  dark 
side  of  anything  ! 

Grow  continually;  be  no  mere  job  holder,  but  a  broad  man. 
The  success  won  in  great  cities  by  awkward  country  boys  is  a 
continual  surprise  to  city  youth.  "  Why,  they  are  so  green," 
is  the  comment,  (But  is  there  not  hope  for  anything  so  long 
as  it  is  green  ?j  Brownness  means  dead  cells,  while  green- 
ness holds  the  promise  of  growth.  And  growth  is  the  most 
important  of  all  the  qualifications  for  success.  What  counts  in 
life  is  not  so  much  what  you  are  as  what  you  arc  becoming. 

1 .  Gjviv  in  intelligence.  No  matter  from  what  college  you 
were  graduated,  no  matter  if  you  can  write  after  )'our  name 
several  degrees,  you  are  always  to  be  a  student.  In  life's 
school  the  final  marks  are  never  handed  in.  Society  is  ever 
in  process,  always  a  becoming.  Nothing  is  done  as  it  used 
to  be.  Civilized  man  has  forsaken  the  savage  practices  of 
half  a  million  years  ago,  and  the  men  of  a  century  hence 
will  refuse  to  follow  what  they  will  term  the  "  barbarisms  " 
of  to-day.  Under  the  iron  spur  of  competition  business  men 
are  hurried  on  to  failure  or  forced  upward  into  captains  of 
industry.  Your  work  ten  years  from  now  will  not  be  done 
as  it  is  to-day,  and  if  you  do  not  improve,  another  man  will 
be  given  your  place. 

2,  Add  nezv  experiences  at  every  turn.  This  is  the  cure 
for  the  "  old  fogyism  "  which  begins  to  creep  upon  a  man 
even  in  the  twenties.  Do  not  condemn  a  thing  simply  be- 
cause it  is  new.    Be  receptive,   '"  If  you  only  read  books  about 

.  things  you  already  know,  only  talk  about  things  you  have 
already  talked  about  before,  only  meet  people  whose  utter- 
most thought  you  have  sounded  long  ago,  your  mind  becomes 
caked,  incapable  of  action,  quite  useless."  Refuse  to  let  your 
mind  stand   still  or  become   set.     If   your   position   means 


EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD          345 

nothing  but  an  enervating  grind,  get  into  another  one.  You 
cannot  afford  at  any  price  to  have  your  brain  marred,  your  life 
stunted  and  deadened.  Recognize  the  fact  that  most  of  your 
wage  is  outside  the  salary  envelope  ;  work  where  you  can  grow. 

3 .  Increase  your  efficiency  daily.  You  are  not  to  take  for 
your  standard  what  people  in  general  are  doing,  to  turn  off 
work  in  a  slipshod  manner  because  others  do.  They  are 
going  to  reach  only  a  certain  level,  and  you  are  not  respon- 
sible if  it  is  low.  But  as  for  your  level  —  to  reach  that,  keep 
your  standard  high  and  put  the  stamp  of  your  own  character  on 
everything  you  do.  This  only  will  fit  you  for  the  coveted  posi- 
tion for  which  you  have  been  aspiring  and  working  for  years. 

4.  Train  to  be  junior  partjier.  "  My  plan  has  been,"  says 
Mr.  Rockefeller,  "not  only  to  know  how  to  do  my  own  work, 
but  also  that  of  the  man  above  me." 

"  The  most  valuable  acquisition  to  his  business  which  an 
employer  can  obtain,"  says  Mr.  Carnegie,  "is  an  exceptional 
young  man.  I  would  not  give  a  fig  for  the  young  man  who 
does  not  already  see  himself  the  partner  or  the  head  of  an 
important  firm." 

Watch  for  opportunities  and  make  them  serve  you.  Are 
you  the  delivery  boy  ?  So  once  was  Albert  A.  Pope ;  but 
when  he  first  saw  a  bicycle  in  1876  he  was  alert  enough  to 
recognize  its  future,  organized  a  factory,  and  at  the  age  of 
thirty-five  launched  out  upon  what  became  a  famous  manu- 
facturing career.  Are  you  the  messenger  boy  i*  So  once  was 
Henry  Clews  ;  he  is  now  worth  millions.  Do  you  sweep  out 
the  office  in  the  morning  ?  So  once  did  Andrew  Carnegie. 
And  the  three  boys  who  took  turns  with  him  are  David 
McCargo,  now  superintendent  of  the  Alleghany  Valley  Rail- 
road ;  Robert  Pitcairn,  superintendent  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  ;  and  Mr.  Moreland,  city  attorney  of  Pittsburgh. 

Smile  upon  jealousy,  and  advance.  Thousands  of  men, 
perhaps  not  so  markedly  as  these,  but  still  like  them,  have 
astounded  their  fellow  employees  by  the  swiftness  of  their 


346  OCCUPATIONS 

advance.  They  learned  what  you  may  some  day  learn,  that 
the  man  who  pushes  forward  usually  arouses  the  petty  jeal- 
ousies of  those  who  are  passed,  Hugh  Chalmers  was  sneered 
at  for  his  "  presumption  "  when  as  a  cash  boy  in  the  largest 
factory  of  its  kind  in  the  world  he  dared  to  suggest  impro\-e- 
ments ;  but  he  kept  his  eye  on  the  goal,  and  his  pay  envelope 
grew  until  he  was  getting  $72,000  a  year.  When  your  efforts 
to  make  an  honest  advance  bring  whispers,  sneers,  and  criti- 
cisms upon  you,  smile,  but  move  forward.  "The  quickest 
way  to  down  the  anvil  chorus,"  says  President  Earl  of  the 
Nassau  National  Bank,  "is  to  keep  on  delivering  the  goods." 

Merit  and  industry  versus  luck,  l^oys  are  apt  to  think 
there  are  some  peculiar  tricks,  some  uncanny  ways,  by  which 
men  rise  to  prominence,  and  they  are  anxicuis  to  be  let  inlo 
the  secret.  "This  secret  business,"  says  Sir  Thomas  Lipton, 
"  is  all  nonsense.  I  have  simply  worked  hard,  devoted  my 
whole  time  to  my  business,  had  my  heart  in  it,  and  I  could 
not  help  succeeding." 

"  There 's  no  such  thing  as  luck,"  said  Russell  Sage. 
"I'm  sure  there  was  none  of  it  about  my  career.  I  know 
just  how  I  earned  every  penny,  and  the  reason  for  it,  and 
I  never  got  anything  I  did  n't  work  for." 

"  It  is  my  idea,"  said  Collis  P.  Huntington,  "  that  a  man's 
business  should  be  his  first  thought  and  care.  It  has  always 
been  mine.  In  consequence,  I  suppose  there  are  a  great 
many  things  about  which  I  know  less  than  the  average  man, 
but,  on  the  other  hand,  I  am  very  certain  that  there  is 
nobody  who  knows  more  about  my  business  than  I  do." 

Are  not  these  directions  plain  and  simple,  something  that 
every  boy  can  follow  who  wants  to  become  junior  partner.? 

Most  important  of  all,  let  your  heart  ripen  as  the  years 
pass.  You  are  not  to  be  merely  a  merchant,  or  an  electrician, 
or  a  railroad  manager,  but  a  complete  man.  Your  heart 
must  grow  warmer,  your  sympathies  must  become  broader, 
and  you  must  show  greater  cordialit}^  to  all  as  you  move 


EFFICIENT  WORK  AND  ITS  REWARD          347 

swiftly  along  the  path  of  life.  You  may  some  day  be  a 
superintendent,  a  general  manager,  or  even  president  of  a 
large  business,  with  many  employees  under  your  control,  and 
it  will  then  be  your  great  privilege  to  do  for  them  all  that 
you  wish  had  been  done  for  you  years  before.  You  are  to 
labor  during  the  greatest  years  the  world  has  yet  known,  and 
to  strive  manfully  to  realize  its  blessings  for  all  men.  In  so 
doing,  the  truth  will  come  home  to  you  that  even  amid  fac- 
tory smoke,  on  hurrying  trains,  or  in  busy  counting  house 
or  store,  the  fullness  of  life  has  been  found  ;  that  not  only 
has  vocational  success  been  yours,  but  you  have  also  fought 
the  good  fight,  kept  the  faith,  and  lived  largely  and  well. 

EXERCISES 

1.  Find  out  something  of  the  life  careers  of  Andrew  Carnegie, 
Sir  Thomas  Lipton,  Edward  Bok,  Albert  J.  Beveridge,  Russell  Sage, 
Marshall  Field,  Nathan  Strauss,  Thomas  Edison,  John  H.  Patterson. 

2.  Find  out  all  you  can  regarding  the  life  career  of  some  successful 
man  of  your  state  or  town. 

3.  What  qualities  are  holding  you  back?  How  can  you  replace  them 
by  forward-moving  qualities.''  Name  five  specific  things  you  can  do  to 
become  more  successful. 

4.  If  one  lacks  ambition,  or  perseverance  to  make  one's  ambitions 
real,  how  may  either  defect  be  remedied  ? 

5.  What  have  you  done  since  you  began  this  book  to  realize  your 
ambitions  ? 

READINGS  AND  REFERENCES 
Books 

Beveridge,  Albert  J.    The  Young  Man  and  the  World.   D.  Appleton 

and  Company,  New  York,  1905.    $1.50. 
BoK,  Edward.    Successward.    Doubleday,  Page  and  Company,  New 

York,  1895.    50  cents. 
Carnegie,  Andrew.    The  Empire  of  Business.    Doubleday,  Page  and 

Company,  New  York,  1902.    $3.00. 
CoNWELL,  Russell.    The  New  Day.    The  Griffith  &  Rowland  Press, 

Philadelphia,  1904.    50  cents. 


348  OCCUPATIONS 

GuLiCK,  Luther  H.  Mind  and  Work.  Doubleday,  Page  and  Com- 
pany, New  York,  1909.    ;?i.20. 

GuLlCK,  Luther  H.  The  Efficient  Life.  Doubleday,  Page  and  Com- 
pany, New  York,  1906.    $1.20. 

LoRiMER,  George  H.  Letters  from  a  Self-made  Merchant  to  his  Son. 
Small,  Maynard  &  Company,  Boston,  1904.    $1.50. 

Marden,  Orisox  S.  Pushing  to  the  Front.  The  Success  Company, 
Petersburg,  N.Y.,  191 1.    $2.95. 

Mardex,  Orisox  S.  Talks  with  Great  Workers.  Thomas  Y.  Crowell 
Company,  New  York,  1901.    $1.50. 


APPENDIX^ 

VOCATIONAL  LIBRARIES 
Set  I  PRICE 

BoK,  Edward.    Successward.    Fleming  H.  Revell  Company, 

New  York $0.50 

Davis,  R.,  and  Lingham,  C.  H.  Business  English  and  Corre- 
spondence.   Ginn  and  Company,  Boston i  .00 

Hall,  S.  R.     How  to  Get  a  Position  and  How  to  Keep  it. 

Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company,  New  York .50 

GULICK,  Luther  H.    The  Efficient  Life.    Doubleday,  Page 

and  Company,  New  York 1.20 

Handbook   for    Builders.     International   Textbook   Company, 

Scranton,  Pa.    .  .50 

Handbook  for  Salesmen.    International   Textbook   Company, 

Scranton,  Pa .50 

Handbook  for  Stenographers.     International  Textbook  C'om- 

pany,  Scranton,  Pa .50 

Tolman,  W.  H.    Hygiene  for  the  Worker.    American  Book 

Company,  New  York .50 

Williams,  Archibald.    How  it  is  Made.    Sully  and  Klein- 

teich,  New  York 1.20 

Total  cost $6.40 

Set  II 

All  books  in  Set  I 56.40 

FOLTZ,  E.  B.  K.    Federal  Civil  Service.    G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons. 

New  York 1.50 

Handbook  for  Mechanics.    International  Textbook  Company. 

Scranton,  Pa .50 

Harrington,  H.  F.,  and  Frankenberg,  T.  T.    Essentials 

in  Journalism.    Ginn  and  Company,  Boston 1.75 

1  These  books  may  be  obtained  of  the  publishers,  of  your  local  book 
dealers,  or  of  general  book  dealers. 

349 


350  OCCUPATIONS 

PRICE 

Reid,  Whitelaw,  and   Others.     Careers   for  the  Coming 

Men.    Saalfield  Publishing  Company,  Akron,  Ohio       .     .  1.50 

Williams,  Archibald.    How  it  is  Done.    Sully  and  Klein- 

teich,  New  York 1.20 

Total  cost $12.85 

Set  III 

All  books  in  Set  II $12.85 

Handbook  for  Advertisers.    International  Textbfjok  Company, 

Scranton,  Pa .50 

Handbook  for  Concrete   Engineers.     International   Textbook 

Company,  Scranton,  Pa .50 

Makden,  O.  S.    Choosing  a  Career.    Bobbs-Merrill  Company, 

Indianapolis 1 .00 

Sloane,   T.    O.     How  to  become  a   Successful   Electrician. 

Norman  Henley  Publishing  Company,  New  York     ...  i  .00 

Wilson.   Working  One's  Way  through  College  and  University 

A.  C.  McClurg  &  Co.,  Chicago i  .00 

Total  cost $16.85 

Set  IV 

All  books  in  Set  III $16.85 

Brisco,  N.  a.  Economics  of  Business.  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, New  York 1.50 

Johnson,  Emory  R.  Elements  of  Transportation.  D.  Apple- 
ton  and  Company,  New  York 1.50 

Harden,   O.    S.     Talks  with  Great  Workers.     Thomas  Y. 

Crowell  Company,  New  York 1.50 

Total  cost $21.35 

Reference  Works 

"The  World  Almanac"  (35  cents)  can  be  secured  at  all  booksellers, 

and  is  a  mine  of  valuable  information. 
Census  reports  can  be  secured  from  the  Census  Bureau  or  from  your 

congressman.    All  schools  should  have  at  hand  the  Abstract  of  the 

last  census.    These  are  sent  free  of  charge. 


APPENDIX  351 

Free  Material  Available 

Catalogues  of  the  various  schools,  colleges,  and  universities  will  be  sent 
upon  i^equest.  In  some. cases  a  complete  catalogue  will  not  ordi- 
narily be  sent,  but  there  will  probably  be  no  difficulty  if  reasons  for 
the  request  are  given. 

Circulars  are  to  be  had  of  various  correspondence  schools,  an  especially 
complete  and  interesting  set  being  issued  by  the  International 
Correspondence  Schools.  All  such  circulars  should  be  used  with 
caution,  since  not  all  schools  are  careful  of  their  statements. 

Articles  of  vocational  information  frequently  appear  in  newspapers  and 
magazines.  Most  of  such  material  is  interesting,  and  some  of  it  is 
of  considerable  value. 


INDEX 


Accounting  division  of  a  commercial 
concern.  89 

Advancement,  Andrew  Carnegie's, 
15;  of  building  contractor,  189; 
in  civil-service  work,  135;  of  den- 
tist, 254;  of  engineer,  108;  of 
fireman,  108  ;  in  a  machine  trade, 
211;  of  manufacturer,  159;  of 
pharmacist,  256;  of  photographer. 
293  ;  preparation  for,  94 ;  of  pri- 
vate secretary,  285;  in  a  shop. 
211;  of  stationary  engineer,  213 

Advantages,  of  the  blacksmith's 
trade,  19S  ;  of  the  building  trades. 
173;  of  the  dentist's  profession. 
253 ;  of  the  journalist's  profes- 
sion, 266;  of  the  machine  and 
related  trades,  218;  of  motor- 
truck driving,  218;  offered  by 
railroad  companies,  121  ;  of  the 
printer's  trade,  288 ;  of  scientific 
testing  of  milch  cows,  51  f. 

Advertiser,  85 

Aeronaut,  295 

Agriculture,  31  ff. ;  attractions  of 
rural  life,  33 ;  beekeeper,  61  ; 
dairyman,  50  ff. :  fruit  grower,  58: 
floriculturist,  61 ;  immensity  of  one 
year's  production,  32  ;  landscape 
gardener,  61 ;  market  gardening. 
56 ;  nature  of  the  occupation, 
37  ff. ;  nurseryman,  60  ;  other  oc- 
cupations and,  61  ;  poultryman, 
53  ff.  ;  qualifications  for,  34  ;  re- 
muneration, 37  ff. ;  seedsman,  60  ; 
social  advantages,  35 ;  starting 
and  succeeding  in,  41  ff.;  stock- 
man, 49  ;  suggestions  to  prospec- 
tive farmers,  62  ;  swine  raiser,  61  ; 
various  positions,  31 

Appendix,  349 ;  free  material  avail- 
able, 351  ;  reference  works,  350; 
vocational  libraries.  349 

Application  for  civil-service  posi- 
tion,  130 


Applying  by  letter,  326;  in  person, 

331 
Apprentice,   157  ff.,   174;  work  of, 

174 
Architect,  164,  189,  229,  236 
Artist  and  illustrator,  289 

Baker,  297 

Hanking,  77 

Beekeeper,  61 

Blacksmith,  196,  198 

Building  contractor,  164,  174,  187  f. 

Building  trades,  164  ff. ;  actual  work 
of    apprentices,     174;     building 
contractor,     187   ff. ;      carpenter, 
164  ff. ;    contracting  mason,  174; 
fine  carpentering  or  cabinetmak- 
ing,  170;  general  scheme  of  work 
of  the  building  tradesmen,  164 
janitor,    190  ff.  ;    mason.    172  ff. 
painter    and    decorator.    184  ff. 
plumber,   178  ff.;    practical  elec- 
trician,   182  ff.  ;    structural    iron- 
worker,  175  ff. 

Buying  division  of  a  commercial 
concern,  86 

Cabinetmaking,  170 

Carpenter,  163,  164 

Characteristics  of  a  good  vocation, 
7  ff. ;  advancement,  15;  health- 
fulness,  u;  personal  suitability. 
18;  remuneration,  7;  safety,  13; 
social  standing,  17 

Chauffeur,  197,  214 

Civil  engineer,  228,  229 

Civil  service,  127  ff. ;  advancement, 
135;  business  experts,  137; 
chances  for  appointment,  131  ff. ; 
in  the  consular  service,  138;  de- 
sirability of  the  different  posi- 
tions, 129;  distribution  of  federal 
positions,  133;  engineering  and 
technical  positions,  137  ;  experts 
in   administrative  methods,   137  ; 


353 


354 


OCCUPATIONS 


federal  positions,  128;  financial 
investigation,  137;  growth  of, 
128  ;  hours  of  work  and  absences, 
135;  municipal  positions,  129; 
popular  demand  for,  127 ;  rail- 
roading, 137;  salary,  135;  secur- 
ing a  position,  130;  stability  of 
employment,  134  ;  state  positions, 
129;  statistical  work,  138;  as 
stepping  stone,  135  ff. 

College  professor,  262 

Commercial  department  of  manu- 
facturing, 145 

Commercial  occupations,  66  ff. ;  ac- 
counting division,  89  ;  banking, 
77 ;  beginning  and  growth  of 
commerce,  66 ff.;  buying  division. 
86;  complexity  of  modern  com- 
merce, 81 ;  consideration  of  effect 
of  modern  combination  and  com- 
petition, 80 ;  consideration  of  pos- 
sibilities of  success  and  failure, 
79;  credit  division,  89;  insurance, 
76;  merchandizing,  73;  office 
division,  87 ;  perfection  of  modern 
trade  conditions,  68  ;  preparation 
for  advancement,  94 ;  printing 
and  publishing,  74  ;  real  estate, 
74 ;  selection  according  to  quali- 
fication, desires,  and  capital,  79 ; 
self-preparation,  93  ;  selling  divi- 
sion, 82 ;  social  standing,  69 ; 
traffic  division,  89 ;  variation  of 
hours,  90 ;  varying  requirements 
for  entrance,  91  f. 

Consular  service,  138 

Credit  division  of  a  commercial 
concern,  89 

Dairyman,  50 

Demand,  for  aviators,  295 ;  for 
chauffeurs,  216;  for  expert  driv- 
ers, 217;  for  expert  engineers, 
240 ;  for  expert  social  workers, 
281  ;  for  industrial  chemists,  235; 
for  mechanical  engineers,  232  ; 
for  mining  engineers,  234;  for 
sanitary  engineers  and  associates, 
232  ;  for  specially  trained  secre- 
taries, 284 

Dentist,  253 

Designing,  146,  197,  206 

Draftsman,  148,  197,  205 


P-ducation,  an  important  field  of 
work,  258  ;  of  the  musician,  295  ; 
necessary  for  an  engineering 
career,  238.    See  Training 

Educational  workers,  155,  259  ff. 

Efficient  work :  its  requireinents 
and   its   reward,   338  ff. 

Electrical  engineer,  228,  233 

Electric  railroading,  123 

Electrician,  practical,  164,  182 

Electrotyper,  287 

Engineering,  221  ff. ;  achievements, 
221  ff. ;  architectural  engineer, 
236;  attractiveness,  225;  civil 
engineer,  229 ;  cost  of  course, 
239 ;  development  from  original 
military  and  civil,  227  ;  general 
field  of  work,  227  ff. ;  industrial 
chemist,  235 ;  mechanical  engi- 
neer, 232  ;  mining  engineer,  233  ; 
numerous  opportunities  in  the 
field,  241  ;  preparation  for,  238 ff.; 
sanitary  engineer,  231 

Engraver,  287 

Entrance  conditions  of  commercial 
occupations,  91,  92 

Experimental  worker,  156,  197,  207 

Farmer,  general,  35  ff. 

Farming,  diversified,  39 ;  possibili- 
ties of  earning  a  farm,  41  ;  spe- 
cialized, 48  ff. ;  learning,  44 

Financial  and  accounting  depart- 
ment of  railroad,  116 

Floriculturist,  61 

Fruit  grower,  58 

11  faithfulness,  condition  of,  in  com- 
mercial occupations,  90  ;  the  dif- 
ference in  healthfulness  of  voca- 
tions, II  ff. 

Illustrator,  289;  advertising,  291; 
book,  291  ;  catalogue,  290;  maga- 
zine, 290 

Importance  of  vocational  informa- 
tion, I  ff. ;  the  boy's  duty  and  ne- 
cessity of  self-support,  i ;  the  boy's 
eagerness  to  begin  work,  3  ;  com- 
plexity of  choosing  a  life  career 
nowadays,  5 ;  opportunities  in 
the  world's  work,  2  ;  results  of 
purposeless  drifting,  3;  simplicity 


INDEX 


355 


heretofore     of     choosing     one's 

vocation,  4 
Industrial  chemist,  229,  235 
Inland  and  ocean  navigation,  125 
Insurance,  76 

Janitor,  164,  190 
Journalist,  266 

Landscape  gardener,  61 

Lawyer,  269 

Learned  professions  and  allied  oc- 
cupations, 245  ff. ;  dentist,  253  ff. ; 
journalist,  266  ff. ;  lawyer,  269  ff. ; 
librarian,  264  ff. ;  minister,  26S  ; 
overcrowded,  272  ;  personal  serv- 
ices rendered  by,  245  ;  pharma- 
cist, 255  ff. ;  physician,  246  ff. ; 
priest,  268 ;  qualifications  for, 
272;  rabbi,  258;  teacher,  258  ff. 

Librarian,  264 

Machine  and  related  trades,  196  ff. ; 
blacksmith,  198  ff.  ;  chauffeur, 
215;  choice  of  trade  and  of  shop, 
210;  designer,  206;  draftsman, 
205  ;  experimental  worker,  207  ; 
machine-shop  tradesmen,  200  ff. ; 
machinist,  203  ff. ;  motor-truck 
driver,  215;  scheme  of  work  of 
the  machine  and  allied  tradesmen, 
196;  stationary  engineer,  212  ff. 

Machinist,  148,  196;  work  of,  204 

Managers  in  manufacturing,  150 

Manufacturing,  141  ff. ;  advance- 
ment, i59ff. ;  commercial  depart- 
ment, 145;  designing,  146;  draft- 
ing, 148  ;  engineering,  148 ; 
experimental  workers,  156;  fin- 
ished stores,  156;  importance  of 
modern  manufacturing,  144;  man- 
ufacturing, 149  ff.;  patternmak- 
ing,  148;  storeroom,  148;  tool 
making,  148;  training,  i  57  ff . 

Market  gardening,  56 

Mason,  163,  172;  contracting,  174 

Mechanical  engineer,  228,  232 

Merchandizing,  73 

Metallurgical  engineer,  229 

Mining  engineer,  229,  233 

Minister,  268 

Miscellaneous  and  new  openings, 
275  ff. ;    aeronaut,    295;    artist, 


289  ff. ;  baker,  297  f. ;  illustrator, 
289  ff.;  musician,  295;  osteopath, 
278 ;  photographer,  292  ff. ;  physi- 
cal director,  276  ff. ;  printing 
trades,  286 ;  private  secretary, 
284;  Y.M.C.A.  secretary,  282  ff. 
Municipal  engineer,  228,  231 
Municipal     positions     under     civil 

service,   129 
Musician,  295 

Nurseryman,  60 

Office  division  of  a  commercial  con- 
cern, 87 

Operating  department  of  a  railroad, 
104 

Opportunities,incommercial  occupa- 
tions, 88;  in  the  engineering  field, 
241  ;  in  one's  present  position,  16 

Osteopath,  278 

Painter  and  decorator,  164,  184 

Patternmaking,  148,  197,  208 

Personal  suitability, Patrick  Henry's, 
for  the  law,  18  ;  plus  training  as 
a  factor  in  a  successful  career,  19 

Pharmacist,  255 

Photographer,  292 

Physical  director,  276 

Physician,  246;  specialist.  250 

Plumber,  164,  178 

Positions,  available  in  electric  rail- 
roading, 123;  desirability  of  dif- 
ferent, 129;  federal,  1 28;  securing, 
130 ;  state,  129 

Poultryman,  53 

Preparation,  for  advancement,  94 ; 
of  carpenter,  168;  for  civil-service 
positions,  130;  of  librarian,  265; 
of  mason,  173  ;  of  physician,  248  ; 
of  plumber,  181 ;  of  practical  elec- 
trician, 183 ;  of  social  worker,  282  ; 
of  stationary  engineer,  213;  of 
structural  ironworker,  177.  See 
Training 

Pressman,  288 

Priest,  268 

Printer,  286  ff. 

Printing  and  publishing,  74 

Private  secretary,  284 

Production  department  of  manu- 
facturing, 146 


OCCUPATIONS 


Production  expert,  151 
Purposeless  drifting,  results  of,  3 

Qualifications,  for  agriculture,  34 ; 
of  apprentices,  122  ;  of  carpenter, 
168;  demanded  in  your  prospec- 
tive vocation,  312;  of  dentist, 
255;  for  entering  the  learned 
professions,  272;  of  experimental 
worker,  208;  of  industrial  chemist, 
236 ;  of  lawyer,  270  ;  of  librarian, 
264 ;  of  mechanical  engineer,  233 ; 
of  pharmacist,  255  ;  of  physician, 
246;  for  printing  trades,  289;  for 
private  secretary,  2S4 ;  for  work 
of  transportation,  no 

Rabbi,  26S 

Railroading,  development  of  Ameri- 
can, loi  ff. ;  employees  in,  137; 
how  to  enter,  120 

Real  estate,  74 

Remuneration,  7  ff. ;  of  architectural 
engineer,  237  ;  of  chauffeur,  217  ; 
in  a  college  position,  262  ;  of 
dentist,  254;  of  engineer,  230; 
of  general  farmer,  37 ;  of  indus- 
trial chemist,  235 ;  of  journalist, 
268;  of  librarian,  266;  in  machine 
shop,  211;  of  mechanical  engi- 
neer, 232 ;  of  mining  engineer, 
234 ;  of  minister,  269 ;  of  musi- 
cian, 296;  and  opportunities,  86; 
of  osteopath,  279  ;  of  pharmacist. 
256;  of  physical  director,  278; 
of  physician,  251  ;  of  priest,  269; 
of  private  secretary,  285 ;  of  rabbi, 
269  ;  of  salesman,  84 

.Safety,  difference  between  voca- 
tions as  to,  13  f. ;  improvement 
of  conditions  in  dangerous  voca- 
tions, 14 

Sanitary  engineer,  228,  231 

Securing  a  position,  321  ff. ;  after 
securing  the  position,  336 ;  apply- 
ing by  letter,  326  ff.;  applying  in 
person,  331  ff. ;  choosing  an  em- 
ployer, 32 1  ;  locating  the  vacancy, 
322  ff. 

.Seedsman,  60 

Selling  division  of  a  commercial 
concern,  82 


Sheet-metal  worker,  164,  178 

Skyscrapers,  175 

Social  advantages,  of  commercial 
occupations,  69  ff. ;  of  the  general 
farmer,  35;  of  the  merchant,  71 ; 
of  a  vocation,  17 

Social  worker,  155,  279 

State  positions  under  civil  service, 
129 

Stationary  engineer,  197,  212 

Statistician,  138 

Steam  and  gas  fitter,  164,  178 

Stockman,  49 

Structural  ironworker,  164,  175 

Studying  vocations,  21  ff. ;  compari- 
son of  book  with  local  facts,  24  ; 
investigation  of  many  vocations 
before  selecting  a  life  calling, 
21  ;  profit  in  reading  vocational 
books  and  magazines,  28 ;  study 
of  both  interesting  and  uninter- 
esting vocations,  22 ;  study  of 
vocations  of  others,  23 ;  use  of 
the  exercises  and  trade  literature, 
28 

Superintendent,  in  manufacturing, 
150  ;  of  schools,  263 

Swine  raiser,  61 

Teacher,  258;  of  agriculture,  261; 
college  positions,  262 ;  commer 
cial,  260;  high-school,  259;  in- 
dustrial, 261  ;  of  manual  train- 
ing, 261  ;  supervisors  of  special 
branches,  260 

Technical  positions  in  civil  service, 

137 
Tool  making,  148,  196,  204 
Traffic  department  of  railroad.  1 13 
Traffic    division    of    a    commercial 

concern,  89 
Training,  of  architectural  engineer, 
238  ;  of  blacksmith,  198  ;  of  chauf- 
feur, 215;  of  civil  engineer,  230; 
of  decorator,  184;  of  dentist,  255; 
of  industrial  chemist,  236;  of 
lawyer,  271  ;  of  machine-shop 
tradesmen,  200;  of  manufacturer, 
1 57 ;  of  mechanical  engineer,  233  ; 
of  mining  engineer,  234  ;  of  musi- 
cian, 295;  of  osteopath,  279;  of 
patternmaker.  209;  of  pharmacist, 
235 ;    of   physical  director,   277 ; 


INDEX 


357 


of  sanitary  engineer,  231.  See 
Preparation 

Transportation,  99  ff. ;  advertising, 
115;  apprenticeship  system,  120  ; 
auditing  division,  116;  beginning 
of,  99 ;  courses  of  instruction 
in,  121  ;  development  of  Ameri- 
can railroading,  101  ff. ;  different 
phases  of  railroad  work,  103 ; 
educational  advantages  offered 
by  railroad  companies,  121  ;  ex- 
press service,  115;  financial  divi- 
sion, 117  ;  freight  subdepartment, 
114;  growth  and  importance  of 
electric  railways,  123;  improved 
conditions  in  railroad  employ, 
121;  inland  and  ocean  navigation, 
125;  legal  division,  118;  ma- 
chinery subdepartment,  106;  mail 
service,  115;  nature  of  the  work, 
no;  operating  department,  11 1; 
passenger  subdepartment,  113; 
pay  and  promotion  of  conductors 
and  motormen,  124;  positions 
available,  123;  purchasing  sub- 
department,  104 ;  secretarial  di- 
vision, 118;  subdepartments  in 
charge  of  insurance,  real  estate, 
and  pensions,  1 19  ;  transportation 
subdepartment,  109;  unionization 
of  operating  department.  112;  the 
way  of  actual  experience,  120 

Truck  driver,  197,  218 

Typesetter,  286 

Visits  to  places  of  vocational  inter- 
est, 27 

Vocation,  adaptability  for  the,  302  ; 
analysis     of     prospective,     313; 


changing,  316;  complexity  of 
choosing,  nowadays,  5;  simplicity 
heretofore  of  choosing,  4 ;  social 
standing  dependent  on,  17  f. 
Vocational  adjustment,  301  ff. ;  an- 
alysis of  vocation,  312  ff. ;  chang- 
ing your  vocation,  316;  choosing 
your  life  work,  30  iff. ;  self-analysis 
card,   310  ff. ;    self-improvement. 

Vocational  analysis,  results  of,  314 

Vocational  books,  profits  in  read- 
ing, 28  ff. 

Vocational  counselor,  261 

Vocations,  facts  of  local,  24 ;  de- 
sirable, 304 ;  healthfulness  of, 
1 1  ff. ;  investigation  of,  21;  safety 
of,  13  f. ;  study  of,  i  ff.,  21  ff. 

Work,  of  architectural  engineer, 
236  ff. ;  of  blacksmith,  198;  of 
building  contractor,  187  ;  of  car- 
penter, 166  ff. ;  of  civil  service, 
134;  of  draftsman,  205;  of  ex- 
perimental worker,  207  ;  of  gen- 
eral farmer,  37  ;  of  librarian,  265  ; 
of  machinist,  204 ;  of  minister, 
268 ;  of  modern  manufacturing, 
143;  of  osteopath,  278;  of  pat- 
ternmaker, 208  f. ;  of  pharmacist, 
256;  of  physical  director,  276; 
of  plumber,  179;  of  priest,  26S  ; 
of  rabbi,  268;  of  sanitary  engineer, 
231  ;  of  stationary  engineer,  213  ; 
of  structural  ironworker,  177  ; 
in  transportation  subdepartment, 
1 10 

V.M.C.A.  secretary,  282  ff. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 

HIiC'D  URi-ii) 


3uf^  i^m 


«£C 


ID 


r.  f*  "•' 


Form  L9-Serie8  444 


;r-'7 


I-  ■ 


i 


PLEA«?:  DO   NOT   REMOVE 
THIS   BOOK  GARdIhi! 


m 


'  LIBRARY  FACILITY 
I 


lU  I 


i         University  Research  Library 


03 


o 


r3 


